Early Film

Early Film (Film to 1930)

Films in MRC 1860-1899 / 1900-1919

Films of:

Edwin S. Porter

Lillian and Dorothy Gish

Shakespeare videograpy (for silent Shakespeare)

Listings of early experimental and avant-garde films

Listings of films by nation (for early film from countries outside of the US)

Listings of films by genre (e.g., Comedy, Westerns, Horror Films for silent films)

Serials and Series

Optical Toys and Gizmos
The Media Resources Center owns a small collection of moving image optical toys and devices which may be borrowed for use in the classroom: zoetropes, thaumatropes, praxinoscopes, phenakistoscope, flip books, moire books, ombres chinoises, camera obscura. Contact Gary Handman, Head of the MRC, to make arrangements for use.

Animation, the Beginning (multiple shorts). (1906-1927)

An anthology of animated films dating from 1906 to 1927. Contents: Humorous Phases of Funny Faces, J. Stuart Blackton (4 min.); La Ratelier; Fantasmagoria; Mobiliu Fedele, Emil Cohl (8 min.); Little Nemo, Winsor McCay (8 min.); Revenge of the Kinematograph Cameraman, Ladis Starevich (9 min.); Professor Bonehead is Shipwrecked, Emil Cohl (5 min.); Gertie the Dinosaur, Winsor McCay (8 min.); Dinosaur and the Missing Link, Willis O'Brien (6 min.); Sinking of the Lusitannia, Winsor McCay (6 min.); Bobby Bumps puts a Beanery on the Bum, John Bray, Earl Hurd Bray (5 min.); Out of the Inkwell: Perpetual Motion, Max Fleischer (5 min.); Modelling, Koko the Clown, Bubbles, Max Fleischer (12 min.); Laugh-o-Grams, Puss-n-Boots, Walt Disney (11 min.); Alice on the Farm, Walt Disney (7 min.); Small Town Sheriff, Paul Terry (5 min.); Felix in Hollywood, Pat Sullivan (7 min.); Oswald and the Mechanical Cow, Walt Disney (6 min.) 109 min. 999:518

Animation, the Beginning, Volume 2.(1906-1925)

Classic silent animated movies dating from 1906 to 1925. Contents: Dream of a Rabbit Fiend, Gertie the Dinosaur, Krazy Kat and Ignatz Mouse at the Circus, Krazy Kat and Ignatz Mouse Discuss the Letter "G", Krazy Kat and Ignatz Mouse: a Duet, all by George Herriman; The Flying House, Winsor McCay; Surprise, Max Fleischer; Felix in Fairyland, Pat Sullivan; Alice's Egg Plant, Walt Disney. 68 min. 999:597

Before Hollywood There was Fort Lee, N.J.

Describes the formative years of the silent screen in Fort Lee, New Jersey film production using silent films made in Fort Lee. Includes still photographs, film productions from 1907-1917, and footage from 1935 of the studios in ruins to show the rise and fall of silent filmaking in Fort Lee. It's a brief but fascinating overview of about half a dozen studios that created the modern feature film on the banks of the Hudson River. There are archival photographs aplenty, interesting tidbits about revolving stages (to maximize sunlight) and World War I coal shortages (which drove the industry to sunny Southern California), and some fascinating 'contemporary' shots of surviving buildings circa 1964. 40 min. DVD 6512

Before Mickey: Animation Anthology (1900-1928)

Directed by Donald Crafton. A collection of twenty-five silent animated short films made between 1900 and 1928, with piano accompaniment, occasional subtitles. Contents: Enchanted Drawing, J. Blackton; Animated Painting, E. Porter; Humorous Phases of Funny Faces, J. Blackton; Lightning Sketches, J. Blackton; Princess Nictotine; or, A Smoke Fairy, J. Blackton; Fantasmagorie, E. Cohl; Clair de Lune Espagnol = The Man in the Moon, E. Cohl; Little Nemo, W. McCay; Gertie, W. McCCay; Colonel Heeza Liar at Bat, J. Bray; Bobby Bumps, Before and After, E. Hurd; Farmer Al Falfa's Revenge, P. Terry; Out of the Inkwell: Perpetual Motion, M. Fleischer; 'Twas but a Dream, R. Barre; Mutt and Jeff in the Flood, R. Barre; The Gumps in Taking a Ride, W. Carlson; Le Garde-meuble = The Automatic Moving Company, R. Bosetti; Mest' kinematograficeskogo operatura, L. Starevitch; Kapten Grogg bland andra konstiga kroppa, V. Bergdahl; The Lost World, W. O'Brien; Alice's Mysterious Mystery, W. Disney; Alice Rattled by Rats, W. Disney; The Lunch Hound, W. Lantz; Felix the Cat in The Oily Bird, P. Sullivan and O. Messmer; Felix the Cat Dines and Pines, P. Sullivan and O. Messmer. 120 min. 999:608

Before the Nickelodeon: The Early Cinema of Edwin S. Porter

Between the years 1894 to 1908, Edwin S. Porter was the leading American filmmaker. Follows his movie career, from his first job installing Thomas Edison's Vitascope machines in New York, through his business as a film exhibitor, to his job as head of Edison's movie studio. There he created story films: Jack and the Beanstalk, The Life of an American Fireman, and The Great Train Robbery. By 1909, his film technique was old fashioned. Fired by Edison, he continued making films until 1915, but he had been left behind by new directors with new techniques. Includes hand-tinted stills and segments from Porter's movies and those of other filmmakers. 1982. 60 min. DVD 8229 (DVD region 2); vhs Video/C 3637

[Brooks, Louise] Lulu in Berlin.

Filmed interview with actress Louise Brooks. Contains clips of several of her films. 50 min. Video/C 1849

Diary of a Lost Girl Video/C.999:127; Pandora's Box Video/C 999:31; Prix de Beaute Video/C 999:370

Louise Brooks web site

[Chaplin, Charlie] Charlie Chaplin: The Forgotten Years

Charlie Chaplin was forced to leave the U.S. in 1952, and lived with his family in Switzerland until his death in 1977. For the first time, a documentary film focuses on Chaplin's later years and his work as a prolific musical composer. Interviews with family, friends and colleagues offer insight into these forgotten years through intimate memories and entertaining anecdotes. Includes newly-found footage from private archives. Directed by Felice Zenoni. 2003. 55 min. DVD 4553

Chaplin bibliography

[Chaplin, Charlie] Unknown Chaplin.

Three-part documentary television series which observes film director Charlie Chaplin's creative processes, using outtakes of filmed rehearsals, and close scrutiny by film historians Kevin Brownlow and David Gill. DVD includes three feature-length programs: "My happiest years"; "The great director", and "Hidden treasures." Special features: "Making of" featurette; two rare bonus Chaplin shorts; never-before-seen clips; extra footage; interviews. 3 parts, 52 min. each. DVD 4852; also vhs Video/C 1414; Video/C 999:562

Chaplin bibliography

[Chaplin, Charlie] Making of the Chaplin Mutuals.

Essay on the making of the Mutuals by Sam Gill Special feature accompanying the DVD The Chaplin mutuals. DVD 10

Chaplin bibliography

A Christmas Past: Vintage Holiday Films, 1901-1925

This collection of nine enchanting silent films offers a nostalgic view into the Yuletide pleasures of the early 1900s. Evoking the Victorian charm of Currier and Ives prints, these picturesque comedies and tender dramas were produced as cinematic Christmas cards offered to moviegoers of the silent era. Contents: A holiday pageant at home (1901) (5 min.) / producer unknown -- A winter straw ride (1906) (7 min.) / Edison Film Manufacturing Corp. ; photographed by Edwin S. Porter -- A trap for Santa (1909) (16 min.) / Biograph Film Corp. ; directed by D.W. Griffith ; photographed by G.W. Bitzer -- A Christmas accident (1912) (15 min.) / Edison Film Manufacturing Corp. ; directed by Bannister Merwin ; written by Annie Eliot Trumbull -- The adventure of the wrong Santa Claus : an adventure of Octavius, amateur detective (1914) (14 min.) / Edison Film Manufacturing Corp. ; written by Frederick Arnold Kummer -- Santa Claus vs. Cupid (1915) (16 min.) / Edison Film Manufacturing Corp. ; directed by Will Louis ; written by Alan Crosland -- Santa Claus (1925) (29 min.) / presented by Mr. and Mrs. F.E. Kleinschmidt -- A Christmas carol (1910) (10 min.) / Edison Film Manufacturing Corp ; from the novel by Charles Dickens -- The night before Christmas (1905) (9 min.) / Edison Film Manufacturing Corp. ; directed by Edwin S. Porter. DVD 2215

The Cinematograph

The first public cinema show took place in Paris in 1895, using the cinematograph developed by the Lumière brothers. This program explains the many antecedents of the cinematograph, shows excerpts from the films of Lumi`ere and Meli`es (who elevated film to the level of art), and sheds light on the technological advances in the art of film. Dist.: Films Media Group. c2004. 15 min. DVD 6092

Dawn of the Eye.

Dist.: Films Media Group. 1997. 48 min. each installment. For complete listing of installments in this series, See MRC Journalism videography

History Through a Lens, 1894-1919. Traces the history of the filmed-news industry from the development of the movie camera in 1895 which quickly led to newsreels shown in vaudeville and then in movie theaters twice a week. In reality, much of what was shown was staged by pre-Hollywood film studios. Film shows the competitiveness and tricks used as news reporting got its start and includes rare footage of very early newreel films. Video/C 5942

Eyes of the World, 1919-1945. Hollywood's version of the news was sanitized until a program called March of Time, a theater newsreel program, established the standards still used in the industry today. As World War II progressed it provided a forum for competition between numerous news agencies. Includes newsreel footage of World War II and of D-Day, with commentary by war correspondents. Video/C 5943

Dickens Before Sound

A unique collection of early film adaptations of one of Britain's favorite authors, Charles Dickens, ranging from the first extant adaptation, "Scrooge, or, Marley's Ghost ," to a bonus of the very first Dickensian sound film: Bransby Williams presenting his monologue in the character of Grandfather Smallweed from Bleak House. En route, the development of cinema storytelling will be witnessed as practitioners of this wonderful new art struggle to transform a tale from page to screen. Disc 1. Gabriel Grub (8 min., 1880-1910) -- Scrooge; or, Marley's Ghost / director, Walter R. Booth (4 min., 1901) -- The Cricket on the hearth / director, D. W. Griffith (14 min., 1909) -- Oliver Twist / director, J. Stewart Blackton (9 min., 1909) -- The boy and the convict / director, David Aylott (12 min., 1909) -- Nicholas Nickleby / director, George Nichols (20 min., 1912) -- The Pickwick papers / director, Laurence Trimble (15 min., 1913) -- David Copperfield / director, Thomas Bentley (8 min. extract, 1913) -- Disc 2. Oliver Twist / director, Frank Lloyd (74 min., 1922) -- Dickens' London (12 min., 1924) -- Grandfather Smallweed [from Bleak House] / narrator, Bransby Williams (sd., 4 min. extract, 1926-1929) DVD 6045

[Disney, Walt] Alice in Cartoonland

It has been said that the Disney Studio was built on a mouse, but it all really began with a little girl named Alice. The basic concept of the "Alice films" by Walt Disney was to place a real girl in a cartoon world. This program represents Disney's earliest experiences as a young cartoon producer when he was 20 years old and reveals his development as a director and storyteller. Contents: Alice, the toreador (1925, 9 min.) -- Alice's egg plant (1925, 9 min.) -- Alice in the jungle (1925, 8 min.) -- Alice on the farm (1926, 9 min.) -- Alice rattled by rats (1925, 7 min.) -- Alice's orphan (1926, 7 min.) -- Alice the whaler (1927, 7 min.). Video/C 7168

Disney bibliography

Early Russian Cinema. A. Drankov Studio; Pathe Freres (Moscow) ; Pathe (Moscow-Film d'Art). New York: Released by Milestone Film & Video, 1992.

Silent films with Russian and English subtitles added.

Princess Tarakanova based on play by Ippolit Shpazhinskii, Sten'ka Razin based on song, 'From the Island to the Deep Streams', Romance with Double-Bass, Chekhov adaptation 38 min. 999:686

Folklore and Legend. Contents: Brigand Brothers based on poem by Pushkin ; 16th century Russian Wedding based on play by P. Sukhotin ; Rusalka based on play by Pushkin. Drama in a Gyspy camp (Siversen, 1908) and the unreleased Brigand Brothers (Goncharov, 1912) are plein air folklore subjects, while a 16th century Russian wedding (1909) and Rusalka (1910), both directed by pioneer enthusiast Vasilii Goncharov, show how rapidly Russian cinema espoused national and cultural themes. 40 min. 999:687

Starewicz's Fantasies. Contents: The Dragonfly and the Ant -- Christmas Eve -- The Lily of Belgium. Starewicz's fantasies, Wladislaw Starewicz's later puppet animation is now better known than his brilliant beginning at the Khanzhonkov Studio. He pioneered insect-puppets in The ant and the grasshopper (1911), before turning to live-action fantasy in a version of Gogol's Christmas eve (1913) and contributing to the war effort with an anti-German allegory The lily of Belgium (1915). 999:688

Provincial Variations. Contents: The Wedding day -- Merchant Bashkirov's Daughter. Jewish life was one of the exotic subjects covered in provincial films like the Latvian Wedding day ( Slovinski, 1912). The remarkably bleak melodrama Merchant Bashkirov's daughter (Larin, 1913), set on the Volga, was based on a real murder scandal. 55 min. 999:689

Chardynin's Pushkin. The Queen of spades (1910) -- The house in Kolomna (1913). The former touring actor-manager, Petr Chardynin, made an early name for himself and gave Russian cinema a distinctly cultured orientation with Pushkin adaptations like The Queen of Spades (1910) and The House In Kolomna (1913). In the latter Chardynin's protege Mozzhukhin played both a dashing officer and a farcical cook in drag. 45 min. 999:690

Class Distinctions. Contents: The Peasants' Lot (1912) -- Silent Witnesses (1914). Despite strict censorship intended to prevent any inflammatory material from reaching the screen, many early Russian films achieved a remarkably candid portrayal of social conditions. Gonsharov's The Peasants' Lot (1912) portrayed the hardship of rural life, while an early film by Bauer, Silent Witnesses (1914) dealt frankly with servants' views of their masters in a Moscow mansion. 95 min. 999:691

Evgenii Bauer. Contents: A Child of the Big City (1913) -- The 1002nd Ruse (1915) -- Daydreams (1915). Evgenii Bauer is the major discovery from early Russian cinema. In a mere five prolific years, he achieved mastery in several genres, including the social melodrama of A Child of the Big City (1913), erotic comedy like The 1002nd Ruse (1915) and the psychological melodrama of Daydreams (1915). Admired by his contemporaries, he raised Russian cinema to an unparalleled artistic level before his early death in mid-1917. 93 min. 999:692

Lakov Protazanov. Contents: The Departure of a Great Old Man (1912) -- The Queen of Spades (1916). Protazanov, together with Bauer the leading director of the early Russian cinema, did not shrink from controversy in either his highly successful pre- or post-1917 careers. The Departure of a Great Old Man (1912), about the last days of Tolstoi, provoked legal action by the outraged family. The Queen of Spades (1916) starred Mozzhukhin in one of his most compelling roles as Pushkin's haunted hero. 95 min. 999:693

High Society. Contents: Antosha ruined by a corset (1916) -- A life for a life (1916) -- The funeral of Vera Kholodnaia (1919). A panorama of Russian cinema's social impact at the height of its ambition. Antosha Ruined by a Corset (1916) is a racy, knowing urban comdey by Russia's leading screen comedian, Anton Fertner. A Life for a Life (1916) marked the pinnacle of Bauer's ambition to equal lavish foreign production standards. And The Funeral of Vera Kholodnaia recorded the vast public response to the early death of Russia's greatest star in 1919. 86 min. 999:694

The End of an Era. Contents: The Revolutionary (1917) -- For Luck (1917) -- Behind the Screen (1917). Between the February and October revolutions in 1917, Russian cinema reflected urgent new themes, as in The Revolutionary. But Bauer also continued his vein of tragic melodrama in what was to be his last film, For Luck, designed by and featuring as an actor the young Kuleshov. A poignant fragment, Behind the Screen, shows the stars Mozzhukhin and Lisenko on the eve of their departure into exile. 91 min. Video Disc 150; 999:695

[Edison, Thomas] Edison: The Invention of the Movies.

Commericial motion pictures were invented at the Edison Laboratory between 1888 and 1893. Perhaps none of the component parts were strictly new, but the ability of Edison and his staff to reorganize them for a specific purpose was an extraordinary cultural achievement. In 1894, Edison was the sole producer of motion pictures in the world. This first disc of a four disc set contains films produced between 1889-1903. DVD 3552

Disc 1. Early Edison camera tests; Dickson greeting; Newark athlete; Men boxing; Blacksmithing scene; Barber shop; Edison kinetoscopic record of a sneeze; Athlete with wand; Sandow; Carmecita; Boxing cats; Caicedo with pole; Annabelle butterfly dance; Cockfight, no.2; Corbett and Courtney before the kinetograph; Sioux ghost dance; Buffalo dance; Hornbacker-Murphy fight; Hadj Cheriff, Arab knife juggler; Glenroy Bros., no.2; Louis Martinetti, Contortionist; Bucking broncho; Annie Oakley; Imperial Japanese dance; Robetta and Doretto; Chinese laundry scene; Band drill; fire rescue. Billy Edwards and the unknown; Dickson experimental sound film; Princess Ali, Egyptian dance; Annabelle serpentine dance; Execution of Mary, Queen of Scots; Amy Muller; John C. Rice-Mary Irwin kiss; Shooting the chutes; Fatima, muscle dancer; mess call; inventor Edison sketched by world artist; watermellon eating contest; Lone fisherman; Interrupted lovers; Feeding the doves; Morning bath; Burning stable; Mounted Police charge; McKinley parade; Going to the fire; Morning alarm; Black Diamond express; American falls; First sleigh ride; Mr. Edison at work in labaratory; Return of lifeboat. Troop ships for the Philippines; U.S. troops landing in Cuba; Burglar on the roof; Firemen rescue; Wringing good joke; Gold rush scenes in the Klondike; searching ruins for dead bodies, Galveston; The kiss; Capture of Boer battery by British; Storm at sea; Old maid having her picture taken; High diving scene; Photographing a country couple; What happened on Twenty-Third Street, NY City; Pan-American Exposition by night; Trapeze disrobing act; Burning of Durland's Riding Academy; Jack and the beanstalk; Electrocuting an elephant; Life of an American fireman; Egyptian fakier with dancing monkey; A scrap in black and white; Uncle Tom's cabin; Gay shoe clerk; Turning the tables; What happened in the tunnel; Great train robbery.

Disc 2. European rest cure; How a French nobleman got a wife through the New York Herald personal columns; Strenuous life or, Anti-race suicide; Ex-convict; Klepto-maniac; Seven ages; Whole dam family and the dam dog; Coney Island at night; Little train robbery; White caps; Miller's daughter; Train wreckers; Life of an American policeman; Police chasing scorching auto; Dream of a rarebit fiend; Three American beauties; San Francisco earthquake; Terrible kids; Kathleen Mavourneen; Getting evidence; "Teddy" bears.

Disc 3. Cohen's fire sale; Rivals; Trainer's daughter or, A race for love; College chums; Laughing gas; Little girl who did not believe in Santa Claus; Suburbanite's ingenious alarm; Rescued from an eagle's nest; Fireside reminiscences; Cupid's pranks; Tale the Autumn leaves told (fragment); House of cards; New York of today; How Bumptious papered the parlor; Thirty days at hard labor; Passer-by; Totville eye; Public and private care of infants; Unsullied shield.

Disc 4. At Bear Track Gulch; The Ambassador's daughter; A serenade by proxy; All on account of a transfer; One touch of nature; The adventure of the hasty elopement; The wonders of magnetism; Black eyes; The lone game; The unbeliever.

Faust im Film (Faust in film)

A documentary of early film treatments of the story of Faust in three parts: 1. Faust and his pact with the devil. 2. Faust and the people around him. 3. Faust and magic. The accompanying textbook contains descriptions of well-known Faust films. In German with English commentary. 1999. 36 min. Video/C 8578

[Feuillade, Louis] Fantomas (1913-1914)

Directed by Louis Feuillade. Films from the silent serial crime saga with the evil Fantomas battling Inspector Juve. Based on novels by Pierre Souvestre and Marcel Allain. [Disc 1]. Fantomas (A l'ombre de la guillotine) (1913, 54 min.). Juve contre Fantomas (1913, 60 min.). Le mort qui tue (1913, 91 min.) -- [Disc 2]. Fantomas contre Fantomas (1914, 59 min.). Le faux magistrat (1914, 70 min.). Special features. Photography, Georges Guerin and Albert Sorgius. Cast: Rene Navarre, Edmond Breon, Georges Melchior, Renee Carl, Andre Luguet, Yvette Andreyor. Special features: Photo gallery, covers of the novels, sinister crime stories of the time, illustrated filmographies, a comparison of the original novels with the films, interviews with Marcel Allain, clips from the show "Pour le plaisir" (Rendez-vous avec Fantomas, created by Georges Franju, 1966) and "Bonnes adresses pour rever" (created by Roland Bernard, 1969). DVD 5868

[Feuillade, Louis] Les Vampires (1916)

Directed by Louis Feuillade. Cast: Musidora, Edouard Mathe, Marcel Levesque, Jean Ayme, Fernand Herrmann, Stacia Napierkowska. 1. The severed head -- 2. The ring that kills -- 3. The red code book -- 4. The spectre -- 5. Dead man's escape -- 6. Hypnotic eyes -- 7. Satanas -- 8. The thunder master -- 9. The poisoner -- 10. The terrible wedding. A legendary 7 hour silent crime serial in 10 episodes describing the achievements of Les Vampires, a secret society of criminals led by Irma Vep. The gang uses kidnapping, poisonous gas, heavy artillery, sexual domination and murder to gain power over the elite of Paris. Special features: Inserted essay: The public is my master, Louis Feuillade and Les Vampires by Fabrice Zagury; For the children: a comedy sketch by the cast and crew of Les Vampires to raise funds for the French war orphans. Directed by Louis Feuillade (1916, 3 min.); Bout-de-Zan and the shirker: a comedy that features the child actor, Bout-De-Zan, from episode 8 of Les Vampires. Directed by Louis Feuillade (1916, 8 min.) 399 min. DVD 285

Credits and other information from the Internet Movie Database

Film Before Film.

Director Werner Nekes presents the "prehistory" of cinema by showing various types of motion pictures that led to the birth of the film. Includes shadow plays, peep shows, flip books,flicks, magic lanterns, lithopanes, panoramic scrolls,colorful forms of early animation and numerous other types of historical artifices. 83 min. Video/C 1848

Film History.

This program examines the history of film, from its beginnings in the late 19th century to the invention of VCRs. Filmmaking's roots as an entertainment and storytelling medium are examined, along with the emergence of Hollywood, the studio star system, and birth of the talkies. Film industry regulation, including censorship, is discussed along with the blacklist and competition from television. Contents: One reel stories -- Visual storytelling -- Attracting audiences -- Studio control -- Movie competition -- Video trailers. Dist.: Films Media Group. 1998. 29 min. Video/C 5680

Film Montage: The Projection of Modernity

In this program, art historian Briony Fer analyzes the techniques and applications of film montage as they developed in the 1920s in the Soviet Union and Germany. By comparing and contrasting clips from October and Strike; Man with a Movie Camera; and Berlin - Symphony of a Great City, she illustrates how Sergei Eisenstein, Dziga Vertov, and Walter Ruttmann employed montage to address the concept of the crowd as a heroic protagonist, the collective experience of going to the cinema, and other topics. Dr. Fer also juxtaposes the ideologies of Soviet Moscow and Weimar Berlin as presented in these films. Dist.: Films Media Group. c2005. 24 min. DVD 4486

The Film Parade

A documentary survey of important inventions and contributions to the motion picture industry from 1848 to early films of the 1900s. The film details how stationary frames of pictures are made to move, and how sound is put onto the track. Footage of many silent films is used in this historically important work written and produced by J. Stuart Blackton, founder of the Vitagraph studio. Originally produced in 1934. 66 min. Video/C MM537

First American Features, 1912-1916

From the manger to the cross / directed by Sidney Olcott (71 min. : col. tinted.) -- Traffic in souls / directed by George Loane Tucker (88 min. : b&w) -- Regeneration / directed by Raoul Walsh (72 mn. : b&w) -- The cheat / directed by Cecil B. DeMille (59 min. : b&w) -- Young romance / directed by George Melford (58 min. : b&w) -- Civilization / produced by Thomas H. Ince (86 min. : b&w) -- A girl's folly / directed by Maurice Tourneur (30 min. : col tinted). R. Henderson Bland, Gene Gauntier (1st film); Jane Gail, Matt Moore, Ethel Grandin (2nd film); Rockliffe Fellowes, Anna Q. Nilsson (3rd film); Dessue Hayakawa, Fannie Ward (4th film); Howard Hickman, Enid Mardey, Lola May (6th film); Robert Warwick, June Elvidge, Doris Kenyon (7th film) Videodisc release of silent motion pictures originally produced between 1912 and 1917. From the manger to the cross (1912): Presents a passion play, filmed on location in Egypt and Palestine. Traffic in souls (1913): Set against the white slave trade of the early 1900s, this film dramatizes the John D. Rockefeller white slavery report and the investigation of District Attorney Whitman. Regeneration (1915): Portrays the rough, crime-ridden life in New York City slums. The cheat (1915): Depicts an impulsive, social climbing woman who gambles away Red Cross funds entrusted to her. She seeks the help of an Asian merchant to save her reputation, in return becoming his property. Young romance (1915): Unbeknownst to each other, two department store clerks decide to assume the identities of wealthy customers and spend their vacations as members of high society. They meet and fall in love, but part without revealing their true identities. Back at work, they meet again, realize the truth and happily end the charade. Civilization (1916): Set in a mythical kingdom, this film is a strong appeal for pacifism, painting a vivid portrait of the madness of war and the inevitable destruction and devastation caused by global conflict. A girl's folly (1917): A country girl who is bored with farm life sets out to meet the leading man in a movie being filmed near her home. Video/D 148 (laserdisc)

[Flaherty, Robert]Nanook Revisited

Robert Flaherty's Nanook of the North (1922) created the very genre of film documentary, with its documentation of the Inuit and Eskimo traditions. This film revisits Inukjiak, the site of Flaherty's filming to critically re-examine the realities behind the ground-breaking documentary and the changes since it was made almost 70 years ago. Director, Claude Massot; writers, Claude Massot, Sebastien Regnier. Dist: Films Media Group. 1994. 55 min. DVD 2915; also VHS Video/C 5824

[Flaherty, Robert]The Year of the Hunter

This documentary tells the story of the making of Robert Flaherty's Nanook of the North(1922) and the Inuit who starred in the film. Clips from the original motion picture are interspersed with dramatizations in which Adamie Inukpuk, Nanook's great-grandson, plays the famed hunter. Dist: Films Media Group. 2004. 51 min. DVD 3734

Fleischer, Max and Dave]Max and Dave Fleischer: The Fathers of Movie Animation

This program illustrates the Fleischers' pioneering role in the development of movie animation, providing a concise history of the art form during the early decades of the 20th century. Clips from Popeye and Betty Boop cartoons reveal the caustic vitality of the Fleischers, while numerous excerpts from the feature-length Gulliver's Travels clearly demonstrate the lifelike quality associated with their productions. Dist: Films Media Group. 1997. 27 min. DVD 6084

Credits and other information from the Internet Movie Database

Great Escape, 1927.(The People's Century)

By the mid-1920s, millions worldwide were already confirmed "moviegoers". Movies reflected and affected the way people dressed, thought and spoke, teaching the inexperienced about love and courage, while the governments around the globe were quick to realize the power of film: this new mass entertainment would also prove an unrivaled tool of mass persuasion. Here moviegoers reminisce, revealing how the new medium persuaded, influenced and entralled them, as it offered a welcome refuge from the century's pressures. 56 min. Video/C 5549

The Great Primitives: Landmark Films from the First Decade of Motion Picture History

Edison Kinetoscopic record of a sneeze (1894) -- Sandow flexing his muscles (1894) -- The kiss (1896) -- Boxing cats (1897) -- Pie eating contest (1897) -- Ella Lola's turkish dance (1898) -- Workers leaving the Lumiere Factory (ca. 1895-1898) -- Arrival of the train at La Ciotat (ca. 1895-1899) -- Firemen answering the call (ca. 1895-1900) -- Snowball fight (ca. 1895-1901) -- Demolition of a wall (ca. 1895-1902) -- Watering the gardener (ca. 1895-1903) -- Feeding the baby (ca. 1895-1904) -- Quarreling infants (1895-1905) -- A game of cards (ca. 1895-1906) -- Children digging shrimp (ca. 1895-1907) -- Swimming in the sea (ca. 1895-1908) -- Trip to the Moon (1902) -- Uncle Josh at the moving picture show (1902) -- Life of an American fireman (1903) -- Great train robbery (1903) -- Rescued by Rover (1905) DVD 7983

The Great Train Robbery(1903)

Directed by Edwin S. Porter. Included on DVD 1096; DVD 3552; DVD 7983; DVD 277; vhs Video/C 999:1006; Video/C 999:851

[Griffith, D. W.]

For listing of Griffith holdings in MRC, see MRC Movie Database

[Griffith, D. W.] D.W. Griffith. Father of Film

An in depth look at the accomplishments of this outstanding U.S. filmmaker who transformed a carnival novelty into a new art form; presented here through silent film clips, newsreel clips and photographs, and interviews with his stars and colleagues. PAL format. British Film Institute, 1993. 153 min. total Video/C MM439

Griffith bibliography

[Griffith, D. W.] D.W. Griffith

Contents: D.W. Griffith: the Biograph years (29 min.) - D.W. Griffith: the feature film years (27 min.) Two films which are biographical accounts of the life and work of the early motion picture producer and director, D.W. Griffith. Both films include extensive film clips from his motion pictures. The first film focuses on the films Griffith directed while working for the Biograph Company from 1908 through 1913 and includes an interview with actress Blanche Sweet. The second film reviews Griffith's work after he matured and includes an interview with Lillian Gish who comments upon her experiences acting in his films. Originally produced in 1975 for broadcast on the television program Camera Three. 56 min. total Video/C 4604

Griffith bibliography

[Guy-Blache, Alice] The Lost Garden: The Life and Cinema of Alice Guy-Blache.

Explores the life of pioneer filmmaker Alice Guy-Blache, who in 1910, while married and with her first child, founded her own production company, Solax. Includes television interviews from the sixties, interviews with her relatives and film historians as well as photographs and excerpts from her films. 53 min. Video/C 4743

The Haunted Screen: German Film After World War One

Film critic Peter Buchka explores the German cinema of the 1920s through film clips from these mostly silent films with commentary grouped by film themes such as "Evil and how it entered the world; Dream figures from the real world; Toying with fate" and "Power leads to doom." Film excerpts from: Destiny (1921) -- The Golem: how he came into the world (1920) -- Castle Vogeloed (1921) --Cabinet of Dr. Caligari (1919) -- Faust (1925/26) -- Metropolis (1926) -- Nosferatu: a symphony of horror (1922) -- Hands of Orlac (1924) -- Secrets of a soul (1926) -- Eyes of the Mummy Ma (1918) -- Dr. Mabuse, the gambler (1921/22) -- Madame Dubarry (1919) -- Danton (1921) -- A way to the night (1920) -- Variety (1925) -- Tartuffe (1925) -- Spies (1928) -- Last laugh (1924) -- Nibelungen (1922/24). Dist: Films Media Group. 1998. 60 min. Video/C 6904

A History of Color in Silent Films

Presents a compilation of short silent color films from their inception in 1898. Features hand painted, tinted and toned films by Pathe-Freres and other filmmakers. Contents: Life of Christ -- Nobleman's dog -- Bob's electric theatre -- Slave's love -- New ways of traveling -- David and Saul -- Death and Saul -- Anne Boleyn -- Hunting Mariboo in Abyssinia -- Haunted kitchen -- Medium wanted at son-in-law -- Abyss of Bonau -- Butterflies -- Death of Christ -- El Espectro Rojo. Video/C 999:3530

History of Motion Pictures: Early Variety Motion Pictures

Presents 47 vintage short films and clips from the early years of cinema (1903-1920). The most significant years in the development of moving pictures in the U.S. were those between 1891 and 1920, by which time the cinematographic industry had attained a definite shape and form. The early years belonged to Edison Company, until other entrepreneurs, namely the American Mutoscope and Biograph Company and the American Vitagraph Company arrived. These three East Coast companies controlled most of the industry until the 1920s. Partial content: Stealing a dinner (1903) -- Tom Tinker's pony patter / produced by Hans. A. Spanuth (1920) -- Show girl to burlesque queen (1903) -- Princess Rajah dance (1904) -- Boys think they have one foxy grandpa (1902) -- Happy hooligans (1903) -- 2 a.m. in the subway (1905) -- Fougere (1899) -- Betty Rose dance (1903) -- Ballroom tragedy (1905) -- Society raffles (1905) -- Latina, contortionist (1905) -- Three jumping Tommies / produced by Hans A. Spanuth (1920) -- Spirit of '76 (1905) -- duel scene from "By right of sword" (1904). 71 min.) DVD 4825

Hollywood 1980. 52 min. each

Hollywood. 1, The Pioneers. Contents: "Includes rare footage and excerpts from": Wings (1927) -- Jazz singer (1927) -- The Wind (1928) -- Noah's ark (1928) -- Ben Hur (1907) -- The Black Pirate (1926)

What started as a flickering curiousity in penny arcades soon grew into an art form. In just a few short years, Hollywood began turning out spectacular silent films, with original musical scores. In 1903, The Great Train Robbery drew wildly enthusiastic audiences. Twelve Years later D.W. Griffith produced The Birth of A Nation, which provoked riots and demonstrations, brought audiences flocking and gave birth to the financial fortunes of Hollywood. Video/C 6154

Hollywood. 2, In the Beginning Contents: "Includes rare footage and excerpts from": The Squaw man (1914 -- Intolerance (1916) -- Joan the woman (1916) -- Silent heroes (1913) -- Robin Hood (1922) -- Flaming Youth (1923) -- Teddy at the throttle (1916) -- Thief of Bagdad (1924)

In 1900, Hollywood was a peaceful village with sheep, goats and pigs wandering along its dusty streets. Then filmmakers arrived in search of permanent sunshine, and changed the town forever. The silent films produced by Hollywood transcended national boundaries and languages to become the most powerful medium of mass entertainment the world had ever known. Video/C 6155

Hollywood. 3, Single Beds and Double Standards Contents: "Includes rare footage and excerpts from:" Coney Island (1917) -- The Ten Commandments (1923) -- A Woman of affairs (1928) -- Reformers (1913) -- Fatty and Mabel adrift (1916) -- Life of the party (1920) -- Isle of love (1918) -- Ella Cinders (1926)

Hollywood had become a fairy-tale city of fabulous wealth and dizzying success, when a series of scandals shattered the dream. The Fatty Arbuckle case so shocked America that producers appointed Will Hays to clean up the industry before the public's moral outrage put them all out of work. Hays encouraged "human, heartwarming pictures" and issued a strictly enforced production code designed to keep films wholesome. Hollywood had found its savior. But his price was self-imposed censorship which would rule Hollywood for forty years. Video/C 6156

Hollywood. 4, Hollywood Goes to War. Contents: "Includes rare footage and excerpts from": Hearts of the world (1918) -- The Big parade (1925) -- What price glory (1926) -- Wings (1927) -- Battle cry of peace (1915) -- Civilization (1916) -- Intolerance (1916) -- Heart of humanity (1919) -- My four years in Germany (1918) -- All quiet on the Western Front (1930)

The outbreak of World War I provided Hollywood with one of its greatest sources of plots - and profits. As the American mood shifted away from neutrality, Hollywood followed, abandoning films with pacifist themes for stories of war at the front. With the arrival of peace, war films vanished until King Vidor made The Pig Parade in 1925, followed by What Price Glory and All quiet on the Western Front. Video/C 6157

Hollywood. 5, Hazard of the Game. Contents: "Includes rare footage and excerpts from": Play safe (1923) -- The Black pirate (1926) -- Lilac time (1928)

Silent films are often remembered for their physical gags--always good for a laugh. But behind these gags lay planning, courage and skill. With the notable exception of Douglas Fairbanks, Sr. and Harold Lloyd, stuntmen took the risks while the stars took the credit--and it was a firm rule that no stuntman could reveal the tricks of his trade. Here at last, legendary stuntmen Yakima Canutt, Harvey Parry, Bob Rose and Paul Malvern tell the hair-raising stories behind their greatest stunts. Video/C 6158

Hollywood. 6, Swanson & Valentino. Contents: "Includes rare footage and excerpts from": Sadie Thompson (1928) -- Queen Kelly (1928) -- The Sheik (1921) -- The Eagle (1925) -- Pullman bride (1917) -- Male and female (1919) -- Zaza (1923) -- Manhandled (1924) -- Stage struck (1925) -- Loves of Sunya (1927) -- Sunset Boulevard (1950) -- Four horsemen of the Apocalypse (1921) -- Blood and sand (1922) -- Monsieur Beaucaire (1924) -- Son of the shiek (1926)

Two great stars personified Hollywood: Gloria Swanson and Rudolph Valentino. She sacrificed everything for stardom. He did nothing to seek the adoration which ultimately engulfed him. Swanson recalls her meteoric rise--and fall--with remarkable candor. Valentino's brother, Alberto, helps tell the story of the young Italian who became the silver screen's Great Lover--but whose private life failed to match his public image. Video/C 6159

Hollywood. 7, The Autocrats. Contents:"Includes rare footage and excerpts from": Male and female (1919) -- The Ten Commandments (1923) -- Foolish wives (1922) -- Greed (1925) -- Queen Kelly (1928) -- The cheat (1915) -- Forbidden fruit (1921) -- Manslaughter (1922) -- King of Kings (1927) -- Wedding march (1928) -- Heart of humanity (1919) -- Blind husbands (1919) -- Mery-go-round (1923) -- Merry widow (1925) -- Sunset Boulevard (1950)

Two of Hollywood's greatest directors were Cecil B. DeMille and Erich von Stroheim. But what they shared in achievement, they never shared in success. DeMille worked within the studio system; von Stroheim, against it. And while DeMille's lavish productions reaped huge profits for the studios despite the millions they cost, von Stroheim's films were doomed to be hatcheted by the studio, if even released. Video/C 6160

Hollywood. 8, Comedy-- A Serious Business Contents:"Includes rare footage and excerpts from": Making a living (1913) -- The Pawnshop (1916) -- Luke's movie muddle (1916) -- The General (1926) -- Curtain pole (1909) -- The rink (1916) -- The floorwalker (1916) -- The kid (1921) -- Never weaken (1921) -- Hot water (1924) -- Steamboat Bill Jr. (1928) -- One week (1920) -- Strong man (1926)

One of the first things filmmakers learned in Hollywood was how to make people laugh. Comedy was king, and battling for the throne were four box office rivals--Harold Lloyd, Buster Keaton, Harry Langdon and Charlie Chaplin. In an era brimming with the visual, their comedy was the work of genius. Video/C 6161

Hollywood. 9, Out West Contents: The Massacre (1912) -- The Return of Draw Egan (1916) -- Hell's hinges (1916) -- Tom's strategy (1916) -- Lady of the dugout (1918) -- Great K&A train robbery (1926) -- Straight shooting (1917) -- Covered wagon (1923) -- Iron horse (1924) -- Winning of Barbara Worth (1926)

The Old West was still there when the movies arrived. Cowboys and outlaws saw a heaven-sent chance to relive their youth--and get paid for it--by working in films. The man who really started the "Western Craze" was the Wild West showman William Cody, who made the film The life of Buffalo Bill in 1913. Tom Mix was the next western screen hero, followed by William S. Hart, who dignified the genre with films like Narrow Trail and Tumbleweeds. These films were a celebration of the West, establishing a tradition that continues to this day. Video/C 6162

Hollywood. 10, The Man with the Megaphone Contents: "Includes rare footage and excerpts from": Mare Nostrum (1926) -- Sunrise (1927) -- The Crowd (1928) -- Snow people (1928) -- Blue jeans (1917) -- Daddy long legs (1919)

Silent film directors were a flamboyant breed--pioneers who invented the art of film direction as they went along. Working conditions were chaotic. Open sets were built side by side and back to back, and live "mood" music was provided according to each star's taste. Despite deafening noise and constant distraction, directors talked their cast through every move and emotion, and from this confusion came great films. Video/C 6163

Hollywood. 11, Trick of Light. Contents: "Includes rare footage and excerpts from": Way down East (1920) -- Intolerance (1916) -- Birth of a Nation (1915) -- The Hunchback of Notre Dame (1926) -- The beast at bay (1912 ) -- Liquid electricity (1907) -- Children in the house (1916) -- Down to the sea in ships (1922) -- Viking (1931) -- Man that might have been (1914) -- Cheat (1915) -- Four horsemen of the apocalypse (1921) -- Enchanted cottage (1924) -- Mysterious lady (1928) -- Ella Cinders (1925) -- Little Lord Fauntleroy (1921) -- Juggernaut ( 1915) -- Robin Hood (1922) -- Ben Hur (1926)

In the early days of Hollywood, directors relied heavily on their cameramen. While their cameras may have looked primitive, when handled by a skilled craftsman, a pretty girl was transformed into a "screen goddess." Individual cameramen were invaluable to both studios and stars. With the help of art directors, they achieved some of the most amazing and dangerous sequences ever filmed. Video/C 6164

Hollywood. 12, Star Treatment. Contents: "Includes rare footage and excerpts from": The Merry Widow (1925) -- The Big parade (1925) -- Flesh and the devil (1926) -- Love (1927) -- Down to the sea in ships (1922) -- Plastic age (1925) -- Dancing mothers (1926) -- Mantrap (1926) -- Children of divorce (1927) -- Hoop-la (1933) -- Temptress (1926) -- Man, woman and sin (1927) -- Hollywood review of 1929 -- His glorious night (1929) -- Redemption (1930)

Producers discovered that if they didn't have a star, they didn't have a hit. Creating stars became a business in itself, and soon, the Hollywood Star System was born. From it came such greats as Clara Bow, Lillian Gish and John Gilbert, who inherited the title "Great Lover" from Valentino. The ruining of John Gilbert's career vividly illustrates how producers could make or break a star. When Gilbert fell in love with Greta Garbo he punched Louis B. Mayer after Mayer passed a remark about her. Mayer vowed to ruin Gilbert's career--and made good on his threat. Video/C 6165

Hollywood. 13, End or an Era. Contents: The Jazz singer (1927) -- Lilac time (1928) -- Lights of New York (1928) -- Anna Christie (1930) -- So this is Paris (1926) -- A movie star (1916) -- De forest phonofilm (1922) -- King on Main Street (1925) -- Theodore Case test (1925) -- Stage struck (1925) -- Old ironsides (1926) -- Witt & Berg (1926) -- Don Juan (1926) -- Singing fool (1928) -- Peacock Alley (1929) -- Sky hawk (1929) -- Black watch (1929) -- Iron mask (1929) -- Four sons (1928) -- Showgirl in Hollywood (1930)

Throughout the early to mid-twenties, more and more films were made with synchronized sound and music, but it wasn't until 1927 that Warner Brothers gambled on talking pictures with "The Jazz singer". From that moment on, all that had shaped and created Hollywood was utterly transformed. Talking pictures were here to stay, and the art of silent filmmaking--along with many of the stars, directors and producers devoted to it--were sacrificed to technology. Video/C 6166

Hollywood Chronicles. c1991. Each feature 25 min.

Censorship - The Unseen Cinema; Sex in the Movies. Contents: Censorship - The Unseen Cinema (25 min.): chronicles the struggle in Hollywood for artistic freedom. From sex to drugs to propaganda, Hollywood has always been under fire from those who wish to control the content of films. Sex in the Movies (25 min.): looks at the role of sex and sexual innuendo in film. Sex symbols Theda Bara, Clara Bow, Marilyn Monroe and others lured audiences to the theatre and continued the tradition of sex in the movies. 50 min. Video/C 8262

Poverty Row; The New Rebels. Contents: Poverty Row (25 min.): the story of the "B" movies, the low budget films and serials of yesteryear. These low budget pictures were the vehicles that launched many actors to stardom and the studios they worked have a rich history that is unfolded here. The New Rebels (25 min.): looks at the maverick directors and producers of Hollywood. D. W. Griffith, Orson Welles are the focus and some of today's "rebels" including David Lynch, Stanley Kramer and Paul Bartel. 50 min. Video/C 8263

Judex (silent, 1917)

Directed by Louis Feuillade. One of cinema's first 'superheroes,' the mysterious Judex in these early silent films is torn between an oath of justice against the wealthy banker Favraux, who had earlier wronged his family, and his secret love of Favraux's daughter, Jacqueline. This framework is the basis of a series of extraordinary and engaging incidents involving Judex's brother, the evil Diana Monti and her accomplices, the detective Cocatin, and the charming Licorice Kid. Disc 1: Prologue -- 1. The mysterious shadow -- 2. The atonement -- 3. The fantastic dog pack -- 4. The secret of the tomb -- 5. The tragic mill -- Disc 2: 6. The Liquorice Kid -- 7. The woman in black -- 8. The underground passages of the Chateau-Rouge -- 9. When the child appeared -- 10. Jacqueline's heart -- 11. The water goddess -- 12. Love's forgiveness. Features a newly recorded score by Robert Israel. Also included: The music of Judex, an 18 minute featurette in which Robert Israel discusses scoring Judex and an essay by film historian Jan-Christopher Horak. 315 min. DVD 6178

Credits and other information from the Internet Movie Database

[Keaton, Buster] Buster Keaton, A Hard Act to Follow.

A three part series spanning 60 years, following the astonishing career of Buster Keaton. Written and produced by Kevin Brownlow, David Gill and Raymond Rohauer. Originally produced in Great Britain by Thames Television. 1987.

Keaton bibliography

Part 1: From Vaudeville to Movies. Buster Keaton made his screen debut in 1917. With his deadpan expression and incredible stuntwork, he quickly became an audience favorite, moving from co-starring roles in two-reelers to feature-length comedies. In 1924, he released his brilliant film The Navigator, and claimed his place with Harold Lloyd and Charlie Chaplin as one of the three masters of screen comedy. Includes extensive scenes from his films with commentary by Keaton and his associates. 52 min. Video/C 9280

Part 2: Star Without a Studio. Successful, wealthy and world renowned, Buster Keaton was one of the top stars of the twenties. He released his comic masterpiece The General in 1926. But when his contract was sold to MGM and he lost creative control of his films, his fortunes began to slip. Fights with his producers and marital problems pushed him over the edge into alcoholism and unemployment. Includes extensive scenes from his films with commentary by Keaton and his associates. 52 min. Video/C 9281

Part 3: A Genius Recognized In the 1930s Keaton returned to MGM as a gag writer, but rediscovery of his work in 1949 by film critic James Agee transformed his life, sparking a revival of his films and a series of guest shots and television appearances. Includes footage of the movie, The Buster Keaton story, and his appearances at the Cirque Medrano in Paris, on the television programs the Ken Murray Show, This is your life, Candid Camera and The Buster Keaton Show. Includes extensive scenes from his films and television appearances with commentary by Keaton and his associates. 52 min. Video/C 9282

Keaton bibliography

The Jazz Singer(1927)

Directed by Alan Crosland. Cast: Al Jolson, Mary McAvoy, Warner Oland, William Demarest, Eugenie Besserer, Otto Lederer, Josef Rosenblatt. Jakie Rabinowitz is the son of a Jewish cantor. Turning his back on family tradition, Jakie transforms himself into cabaret-entertainer Jack Robin. When Jack comes home to visit his parents, he is warmly greeted by his mother, but is given the cold-shoulder by his father, who feels that Jack is a traitor to his heritage by singing jazz music. On the eve of his biggest show business triumph, Jack receives word that his father is dying. Out of respect, Jack foregoes his opening night to attend Atonement services at the temple and sings the Kol Nidre in his father's place. In motion picture history, this marks the first feature film to utilize synchronous sound. Actor Al Jolson's songs include "Toot, toot, tootsie", "Blue skies", and "Mammy". Special features: Disc 1: Commentary by Ron Hutchinson, founder of The Vitaphone Projects and Nighthawks Bandleader Vince Giordano; vintage Al Jolson short films: "A plantation act," "An intimate dinner in celebration of Warner Bros. Silver Jubilee," "Hollywood handicap," and "A day at Santa Anita" ; radio show adaptation and movie trailer gallery; classic homage cartoon "I love to singa" which features a jazz-singing Owl Jolson. DVD 8594

Credits and other information from the Internet Movie Database

The Jazz Singer: Astonishing Rarities

A collection of 24 rare, historic Vitaphone comedy and music shorts starring the greats of Vaudeville and the early sound era, many recently recovered and restored after being lost. 1. Elsie Janis in a vaudeville act: "Behind the lines." (7 min.) -- 2. Bernardo de Pace: "The wizard of the mandolin." (10 min.) -- 3. Van and Schenck: "The pennant winning battery of songland." (9 min.) -- 4. Blossom Seeley and Bennie Fields with the music boxes (9 min.) -- 5. Hazel Green & Company (8 min.) -- 6. The night court (9 min.) -- 7. The police quartette (8 min.) -- 8. Ray Mayer & Edith Evans in "Where East meets West" (9 min.) -- 9. Edele Rowland: "Stories in song" (9 min.) -- 10. Stoll, Flynn & Company "The Jazz mania quartet" (10 min.) -- 11. The Ingenues: "The band beautiful" (9 min.) -- 12. Foy Family in "Chips of the old block" (7 min.) -- 13. Dick Rich & His Melodious Monarchs (10 min.) -- 14. Gus Arnheim and his Ambassadors (9 min.) -- 15. Shaw & Lee: "The Beau Brummels" (8 min.) -- 16. The roof garden revue / directed by Larry Ceballos (9 min.) -- 17. Trixie Friganza in "My bag o' tricks" (10 min.) -- 18. Green's Twentieth Century Faydetts (6 min.) -- 19. Sol Violinsky: "The eccentric entertainer" (7 min.) -- 20. Ethel Sinclair and Marge La Marr: "At the seashore" (8 min.) -- 21. Paul Tremaine and his Aristocrats (9 min) -- 22. Baby Rose Marie: "The child wonder" (8 min.) -- 23. Burns & Allen in "Lambchops" (8 min.) -- 24. Joe Frisco in "The happy hottentots." (10 min.) DVD 8594: disc 2

The Jazz Singer: How Movies Learned to Talk

Feature-length documentary on the development of sound technology by Thomas Edison, and Lee De Forest and others that eventually evolved into talking motion pictures. Looks at the role of the Vitaphone System and Warner Bros. who pioneered the first sound films. Includes excerpts from early feature and documentary sound films with commentary by experts in the motion picture field. 84 min. DVD 8594: disc 1

The jazz Singer: The Early Sound Era

Contents: Gold Diggers of Broadway [2 excerpts] / Warner Brothers Pictures ; director, Roy del Ruth ; scenario-dialogue by Robert Lord (16 min. 1929) --The voice from the screen / Vitaphone presents ; by Edward B. Craft (1926, 16 min.) -- Finding his voice / story by W.E. Erpi; directed by F. Lyle Goldman and Max Fleischer (1929, 10 min.) -- The voice that thrilled the world / Warner Brothers ; directed by Jean Negulesco (1943, 18 min.) -- Okay for sound / Warner Brothers. ; Vitaphone Corp. (1956, 20 min.) -- When the talkies were young / Warner Bros. ; Vitaphone Corp. ; produced and written by Robert Youngson (1955, 20 min.) Gold diggers of Broadway: Two excerpts from an early musical talkie originally considered lost. Voice from the screen: Edward B. Craft describes the development and potential of the Vitaphone process; the first successful sound recording for motion pictures. Includes a tour of the Vitaphone Studio and one of the first sound stages ever built. Finding his voice: A 1929 animated cartoon schronized to voice & sound which illustrates how sound is added to a motion picture. Voice that thrilled the world: A documentary with early talkie film clips about the development of sound in motion pictures. Okay for sound: Traces the development of sound in the motion picture industry with cameo appearances by Cary Grant, Humphrey Bogart, Lauren Bacall, and Errol Flynn. When the talkies were young: Film segments from talkies with a focus on actors and actresses in the very first years of sound films. DVD 8594: disc 3

[Keaton, Buster] Buster Keaton Rides Again

Buster Keaton rides again: A documentary about the life and film career of Buster Keaton with emphasis on the making of "The railrodder." An absorbing portrait of one of the world's comic greats, it shows Keaton relaxing, telling yarns and plotting the next day's action with considerable flair despite his 70 years. When he recalls gags he employed in the past, the old scenes are replayed on the film. 1965. 80 min. DVD 1401

Keaton bibliography

[Keaton, Buster] Keaton Plus

Lesser known short films of Buster Keaton. Includes: Interview with Keaton -- Silent echoes: Interactive maps, Case study: The General, Case study: Cops, Tour of Keaton's L.A. -- Tributes: This is your life, Orson Welles introduces The General, Lillian Gish introduces College, Gloria Swanson introduces The General -- Photo gallery: Family photos, Vaudeville, portraits, production stills, special effects, the later years. DVD 2209

Keaton bibliography

[Keaton, Buster] The Metaphysics of Buster Keaton

Film critic Andrew Sarris explores the artistry of Buster Keaton, both as an actor and as a film-maker, and discusses the preservation of Keaton's work with film historian Raymond Rohauer. Includes actual footage of Keaton's best to explore the dynamics that made slapstick film a universal art form. Produced in 1970 for broadcast on the television program Camera Three. 28 min. Video/C 4607

Keaton bibliography

Keepers of the Frame

Examines the history, science and struggles of film preservation with interviews with those who are dedicated to saving this precious art form. With the loss of over 90% of silent films and 50% of sound films ever made the emphasis is on the need to preserve as much film as possible of every kind, from newsreels to home movies, as a record of life in the 20th century. Director/co-producer, Mark McLaughlin.2000. 70 min. Video/C 8592

Landmarks of Early Film. [Pt.1]

A compilation of the very earliest films from the first projections of moving images to the advent of the feature film, an area of film history often underseen, underappreciated and understudied. Contents: Actualities (1897-1910) -- The great train robbery (1903) -- The whole dam family and the dam dog (1905) -- The golden beetle (1907) -- The policemen's little run (1907) -- Troubles of a grasswidower (1908) -- Nero, or The fall of Rome (1909) -- Winsor McCay and his animated pictures (1911) -- The girl and her trust (1912) -- Bangville police (1913). DVD 277

Landmarks of Early Film. The Magic of Méliès

A collection of M`elies films along with a documentary view of the filmmaker's life. Integrating rare photographs, early drawings and numerous motion picture clips, this film charts his life from shoe factory worker to proprietor of Paris' mystical Theatre Robert-Houdin where Melies learned the skills to become a cinematic illusionist and developed an interest in the supernatural that would influence some of his later work. Contents: L'Eclipse -- Le voyage a travers L'Impossible -- The untamable whiskers -- The cook in trouble -- Tehin-Chao: the Chinese conjuror -- The wonderful living fan -- The mermaid -- The living playing cards -- The black imp -- The enchanted sedan chair -- The scheming gambler's paradise -- The hilarious posters -- The mysterious retort -- The eclipse (The courtship of Sun and Moon) -- Good glue sticks -- Long distance wireless photography. Includes documentary "Georges Méliès: cinema magician" by Patrick Montgomery and Luciano Martinengo, c1978. DVD 278

Library of Congress Video Collection

The Origins of Film. African American Cinema I ; African American Cinema II Pt. 1. African American cinema I (78 min.): Within our gates / Oscar Micheaux (1919) -- Pt. 2. African American cinema II (79 min.): The scar of shame / Frank Perugini (1926) -- Early sound short, Noble Sissle and Eubie Blake (1923) Piano score composed and performed by Philip Carli; series production, English titles for Within Our Gates, and liner notes by Scott Simon. African American cinema I: Within our gates: Tells the story of a young African-American who seeks a Northern white patron for a Southern school for Black children. African American cinema II: Scar of shame: An aspiring middle-class black composer marries a woman to rescue her from the ghetto but soon comes to shun her lower-class status. Sissle and Blake: A short film of the entertainment team of Noble Sissle (on vocals) and Eubie Blake (on piano). DVD 643; vhs (African American Cinema I) Video/C 999:1019; Video/C 999:1023 (African American Cinema II)

Origins of American Animation, 1900-1921; Origins of the Fantasy Feature Pt. 1. Origins of American animation (1900-1921) (83 min.): Enchanted drawing--Fun in a bakery shop--Humorous phases of funny faces--Keeping up with the Joneses (Women's styles)--Keeping up with the Joneses (Men's styles)-- Dreamy Dud--Us fellers--Bobby Bumps starts a lodge--Krazy Kat goes a-wooing--Krazy Kat bugologist-- Krazy Kat and Ignatz Mouse at the circus--Phable of a busted romance--Phable of the phat woman--Never again! The story of a speeder cop--Mr. Nobody home--Mary and Gretel--Dinosaur and the missing link--W.S.S. Thriftettes--AWOL or all wrong old laddiebuck--Katzenjammer kids--Gertie on tour (fragment)--Centaurs (fragment)--Tony Sarg's almanac. -- Pt. 2. Origins of the fantasy feature (130 min): The Patchwork girl of Oz (1914)--Florida enchantment (1914). Piano score composed and performed by Philip Carli; series production, English titles for Within Our Gates, and liner notes by Scott Simon. Origins of American animation: 21 complete films (and two fragments) which are samples of early animated cartoons from the first decades of this century. Origins of the fantasy feature: Patchwork Girl of Oz: Fairy tale about munchkins in the land of Oz. A Florida enchantment: An unusual fable about a women who discovers magic seeds that transform women into men (and men into women). DVD 644; vhs Video/C 999:1021 (Origins of American Animation); Video/C 999:1022 (Fantasy Feature)

America's First Women Filmmakers; Origins of the Gangster Film. Pt. 1. America's first women filmmakers (111 min.): How men propose / Lois Weber -- Matrimony's speed limit / Alice Guy-Blache -- A house divided / Alice Guy-Blache -- Two wise wives / Lois Weber. -- Pt. 2. Origins of the gangster film (82 min.): Narrow road / D.W. Griffith -- Alias Jimmy Valentine / Maurice Tourneur. Piano score composed and performed by Philip Carli; series production, English titles for Within Our Gates, and liner notes by Scott Simon. America's first women filmmakers: How men propose: A comedy of reversed gender expectations. Matrimony's speed limit: a young businessman thinks he must marry before noon in order to inherit a fortune. A House divided: An estranged husband and wife agree to live separately together with comic results. Too wise wives: A satire about society and woman's place in it. Origins of the gangster film: Narrow road: About an ex-convict torn between the devotion of a good woman and the lure of his criminal pals. Alias Jimmy Valentine: A remarkably realistic tale of bank heists and prison life. DVD 645; vhs Video/C 999:1024 (America's First Women Filmmakers only)

The Lumière Brothers' First Films

A look at the birth of the motion picture through 85 of the more than 1,500 films made by the Lumière Brothers between 1895 and 1897. These films include views of Moscow, New York, Paris, Saigon, and Jerusalem, vignettes of life in France, and comedy shorts. 999:1678

Lon Chaney Collection

Disc one: The ace of hearts (1921) / writers, Gouverneur Morris, Ruth Wightman ; director, Wallace Worsley -- Laugh, Clown, Laugh (1928) / producer, Irving Thalbert ; writers, David Belasco, Tom Cushing ; director, Herbert Brenon. Disc two: The unknown (1927) / writers, Tod Browning, Waldemar Young ; director, Tod Browning -- Lon Chaney: a thousand faces (2000) -- London after midnight (1927) / reconstruction by Rick Schmidlin. [The ace of hearts] Director of photography, Don Short ; art director, Cedric Gibbons ; music, Vivek Maddala. [Laugh, clown, laugh] Director of photography, James Wong Howe ; editor, Marie Halvey ; music, H. Scott Salinas. [The unknown] Director of photography, Merritt B. Gerstad ; editor, Harry Reynolds, Errol Taggart. Cast: [The ace of hearts] Lon Chaney, Joy Leatrice, John Bowers. [Laugh, Clown, Laugh] Lon Chaney, Bernard Siegel, Loretta Young. [The unknown] Lon Chaney, Norman Kerry, Joan Crawford. Presents three of Chaney's major silent theatrical works, a documentary about Chaney and a photo reconstruction of the lost film "London after midnight." Ace of hearts: A secret group decides to murder a citizen; the member who draws the Ace of Hearts will be the assassin. But things don't go as planned in this morality tale of intrigue, love and the sacrifice of one man (Chaney) Laugh, clown, laugh: Chaney is the circus clown who delights crowds with his performances, all the while coping with the heartache of a love that cannot be. The Unknown: Chaney throws knives for a living -- with his feet, because he is supposedly armless. Joan Crawford is his assistant who, fearful of the touch of any man's hand, fancies him. Perhaps Chaney's most bizarre work. Lon Chaney, a thousand faces: A screen biography of Chaney's life and career including rare footage, archival photos and insightful commentary from co-stars and historians. London after midnight: A presumed suicide could be a case of murder -- or maybe the supposed victim is alive! Chaney plays the dual roles of a Scotland Yard sleith and a vampire in this offbeat mix of horror and whodunit. DVD 2359

[ Lumière, Auguste and Louis] The Lumière Brothers' First Films

[ Lumière, Auguste and Louis] Lumière Brothers: Les Pionniers du Cinema Francais. Volume I.

Employees leaving Lumiere Factory -- Arrival of Express at Lyons -- Friendly party in the garden of Lumiere -- Feeding the baby -- Boys sailing boats, Tuilleries Gardens, Paris -- The falling wall -- Baths at Milan, Italy -- French dragoons -- Gondola party -- Sack race -- Military review, Hungary --German hussars jumping fences -- Feeding the swans -- Boiler loading -- Le voyage dans le lune (1902) -- A la conquete du Pole (1912) -- The gipsy's warning -- Kingdom of the Fairies (1903). Video/C DVD 7794 [preservation copy]; vhs 999:353

[Lumière, Auguste and Louis] Landmarks of Early Film

Lumière Films (1895-1897) DVD 277

[Lumière, Auguste and Louis] Les Pionniers du Cinema Francais, Volume 1

Employees leaving Lumi?re Factory -- Arrival of Express at Lyons -- Friendly party in the garden of Lumi?re -- Feeding the baby -- Boys sailing boats, Tuilleries Gardens, Paris -- The falling wall -- Baths at Milan, Italy -- French dragoons -- Gondola party -- Sack race -- Military review, Hungary --German hussars jumping fences -- Feeding the swans -- Boiler loading DVD 7794 [preservation copy]; vhs Video/C 999:353

[ Lumière, Auguste and Louis]

See also: The Movies Begin

Lyrical Nitrate.

A tribute to early cinema, constructed from old color tinted and toned nitrate films produced between 1905 and 1915. These are silent films with soundtrack added from old recordings, ranging from Caruso to the sounds of a glass harmonica. In Dutch with English subtitles. 48 min. DVD 4523; also VHS Video/C 3998

[ Méliès, Georges] The Magic of Méliès.

This forth program highlights fifteen fantastic works by the cinema's first special effects wizard, Georges Melies. Contents: Untamable whiskers (1904) -- Cook in trouble (1904) - Tehin-Chao: the Chinese conjuror (1904) -- Wonderful living fan (1904) -- Mermaid (1904) -- Living playing cards (1905) -- Black imp (1905) -- Enchanted sedan chair (1905) -- Scheming gambler's paradise (1905) -- Hilarious posters (1906) -- Mysterious retort (1906) -- Courtship of Sun and Moon (1907) -- Good glue sticks (1907) -- Long distance wireless photography (1908) -- Impossible voyage (1904) -- Georges Melies: cinema magician (1978) DVD 1099; vhs Video/C 999:1009

[ Méliès, Georges] Méliès le cinemagicien ( Méliès the magician) (1898-1909)

Contents: Magic of Méliès (La magie Méliès, 130 min.): Documentary film about the life and work of film pioneer Georges Méliès including interviews with historians and witnesses. Uses archival footage, film excerpts and reconstructions to reveal the life, art, and unique techniques of the legendary film pioneer. Méliès' innovations, including special effects, hand-tinting, backdrops, and costumes, profoundly shaped the course of film history. Méliès magic show: 15 short films of George Méliès, introduced by his grandaughter in front of an audience. These are: -- Une seance Méliès= Méliès' magic show (55 min): Four troublesome heads (1898); Trip to the moon (1902); Infernal cakewalk (1903); Scheming gambler's paradise (1905); Music lover (1903); Infernal boiling pot (1903); Man with the rubber head (1901); Living playing cards (1904); Hilarious posters (1905); Devilish tenant (1909); Untameable whiskers (1904); Imperceptible transmutations (1904); Bluebeard (1901); Fat and lean wrestling match (1900); One-man band (1900). 185 minutes total running time. DVD 1044

[Méliès, Georges] More Méliès

Contents: The inn where no man rests -- Spiritualist photographer -- The kingdom of fairies -- The magic lantern -- Clock-maker's dream -- The cook in trouble -- The Bob kick (a.k.a. Mischievous kid) -- The Oracle of Delphi -- Drawing lesson -- Jupiter's Thunderbolt -- The Mermaid. DVD 7796 [preservation copy]; vhs Video/C 999:610

View George Melies' "Clock-maker's Dream" (Le rêve de l'horologer, 1904)

[ Méliès, Georges]

See also Les Pionniers du Cinema Francais

More Treasures from American Film Archives, 1894-1931: 50 Films

The Streets of New York (5 min.): What happened on Twenty-Third Street (1901) ; At the foot of the Flatiron (1903) ; New York City "ghetto" fish market (1903) -- From Leadville to Aspen (1906, 8 min.) DVD 2945

Movies Begin, A Treasury of Early Cinema, 1894-1914

The genesis of the motion picture medium is recreated in this 5-part collection of the cinema's formative works which reveal the foundation from which the styles and plots of contemporary cinema would later evolve.

Vol 1: The Great Train Robbery. This first program includes the first blockbuster in American film, The Great Train Robbery and other significant early films by pioneer filmmakers. DVD 1096; vhs Video/C 999:1006

Vol 2: The European Pioneers. This second program includes forty formative works by Louis Lumiere, Walter Haggar, R. W. Paul, George Albert Smith, James A. Williamson, James Bamforth, and other early filmmakers. Contents: Arrival of Congress members at Neuville-sur-Saone (1895); Arrival of a train at La Ciotat (1895); Card Party (1895); Boat leaving the port (1895); Leaving Jerusalem by railway (1896); Snowball fight (1896); A fire run (1896); Niagara Falls (1896); Spanish bullfight (1897). -- B. Acres: Rough sea at Dover (1895) -- R.W. Paul: Come along do (1898); Derby (1896); Countryman and the cinematograph (1901); Chess dispute (1903); Extraordinary cab accident (1903); Buy your own cherries (1904); Motorist (1906). G.A. Smith: The Miller and the sweep (1898); Kiss in the tunnel (1899); Let me dream again (1900); Grandma's reading glass (1900); As seen through a telescope (1900); Sick kitten (1903); Mary Jane's mishap or don't fool with paraffin (1903). -- Sheffield Photographic Company: Daring daylight burglary (1903). -- Haggar and Sons: Desperate poaching affray (1903). -- Bamforth and Company: Kiss in the tunnel (1899); Ladies'skirts nailed to a fence (1900); Bitter bit (1900); Rough sea (1900). -- Williamson's Kinematograph Co.: Attack on a China Mission (1900); The big swallow (1901); Stop thief (1901); Fire (1901); An interesting story (1905) DVD 1097; vhs Video/C 999:1007

Vol 3: Experimentation and Discovery. The genesis of the motion picture medium is recreated in this 5-part collection of the cinema's formative works which reveal the foundation from which the styles and plots of contemporary cinema would later evolve. In this third program, the films presented here, ranging from the ingeniously creative to the boldly audacious, offer a sampling of the primitive masterworks from the first ten years of motion picture production that allowed the technical novelty of cinema to so quickly flourish into an artistically expressive medium. Contents: C. Hepworth: How it feels to be run over (1900); Explosion of a motor car (1900); Rescued by Rover (1905). -- L. Fitzhamon: The other side of the hedge (1905); That fatal sneeze (1905). -- Cricks and Martin: A visit to Peek Frean & Co.'s biscuit works (1906). -- Kineto Production Co.: A day in the life of a coalminer (1910). -- C. Freres: Peeping Tom (1901). -- F. Zecca: Ali Baba and the forty thieves (1902-05); Story of a crime (1901); Dream and reality (1901). -- L. Nouquet. Revolution in Odessa (1905); Aladdin or the marvelous lamp (1906). -- P. Zecca: The runaway horse (1907); The physician of the castle (1908). -- G. Velle: Magic bricks (1908). -- International Film Co.: Dewar's Scotch whiskey (1897). -- E. Porter: The gay shoe clerk (1903); Dream of a rarebit fiend (1906) DVD 1098; vhs Video/C 999:1008

Vol 4: The Magic of Méliès. This forth program highlights fifteen fantastic works by the cinema's first special effects wizard, Georges Melies. Contents: Untamable whiskers (1904) -- Cook in trouble (1904) - Tehin-Chao: the Chinese conjuror (1904) -- Wonderful living fan (1904) -- Mermaid (1904) -- Living playing cards (1905) -- Black imp (1905) -- Enchanted sedan chair (1905) -- Scheming gambler's paradise (1905) -- Hilarious posters (1906) -- Mysterious retort (1906) -- Courtship of Sun and Moon (1907) -- Good glue sticks (1907) -- Long distance wireless photography (1908) -- Impossible voyage (1904) -- Georges Melies: cinema magician (1978) DVD 1099; vhs Video/C 999:1009

Vol 5: Comedy, Spectacle and New Horizons This fifth program examines some of the integral works that begin to reflect the modern day cinema. Interspersed with authentic hand-tinted lantern slides used during early theatrical exhibitions. Contents: P. Freres: Policemen's little run (1907); Troubles of a grass widower (1908). -- A. Ambrosio: Nero, or the fall of Rome (1909). -- L. Gaumont: Onesime, clock-maker (1912). -- Vitagraph Co. of America: Windsor McCay or Little Nemo (1911). -- Solax Company: A.G. Blache. Making an American citizen (1912). -- Biograph Company: D.W. Griffith: Girl and her trust (1912). -- Keystone Film Co.: H. Lehrman: Bangville police (1913). DVD 1100; vhs Video/C 999:1010

[Muybridge, Eadweard] Homage to Eadweard Muybridge

Motion studies (1877-85) / Eadweard Muybridge. DVD 1096; vhs Video/C 999:1006

[Muybridge, Eadweard] Motion Studies(1877)

Eadweard Muybridge was one of the most preeminent and innovative photographers of his day. This videodisc contains over 900 plates from his pioneering photographic studies of movement. The animations -- The attitudes of animals in motion, the plates -- Animal locomotion, the plates -- Muybridge biography -- Early photography -- Timeline -- Movie maker. Video/D 18 (laser disc)

The Origins of Cinema. Volume 1.

Traces the origins of cinema through a selection of early silent films produced by Thomas A. Edison and photographed by Edwin S. Porter between 1898 and 1905. Includes comedy films, films showing the use of special effects, the beginnings of delayed suspense and unusual camera movements. Contents: New York drummer (1899) -- Uncle Josh's nightmare (1900) -- Terrible Teddy, the grizzly king (1901) -- Love by the light of the moon (1901) -- Circular panorama of electric tower (1901) -- Panorama of esplanade at night (1901) -- Martyred presidents (1901) -- Uncle Josh at the moving picture show (1902) -- The Twentieth century tramp (1902) -- Fun in a bakery shop (1902) -- Jack and the beanstalk (1902) -- Life of an American fireman (1903) -- Uncle Tom's cabin (1903) -- The gay shoe clerk (1903) -- A romance of the rail (1903) --Rounding up of the "Yeggmen" (1904) -- European rest cure (1904) -- The ex-convict (1904) and The kleptomaniac (1905) -- The Seven ages (1905) -- How Jones lost his roll (1905) -- The whole Dam family and the Dam dog (1905). 198?. 97 min. Video/C 7046

The Origins of Cinema. Volume 2.

Traces the origins of the cinema with early silent films by American Mutoscope and Biograph, including early comedy films, sitution comedy and "chase films," the use of special effects, and films showing the beginnings of delayed suspense and unusual camera movements. Contents: The Dude and the burglars (1903) -- The Story the biograph told (1904) -- Personal (1904) -- The widow and the only man (1904) -- The lost child (1904) -- The Suburbanite (1904) -- Tom, Tom, the piper's son (1905) --An Acadian elopement (1907) -- Grandpa'sreading glass (1902) -- Mr. Hurry-up of New York (1907) -- The tired tailor's dream (1907) -- The sculptor's nightmare (1908) -- A search for evidence (1903) -- The moonshiner (1904) --The hero of Liao Yang (1904). 198-? 112 min. Video/C 7151

The Origins of Cinema. Volume 3.

Traces the origin of cinema with early silent films by American Mutoscope and Biograph, including films based on actual happenings, films based on photographic documentation of dangerous occupations and films demonstrating how film developed its own characteristics, distinct from those of theatre. Contents: The Nihilists (1905) -- The great American jewel mystery (1905) -- A Kentucky feud (1905) -- The Silver wedding (1906) -- The Black hand (1906) -- The paymaster (1906) -- The tunnel workers (1906) -- The skyscrapers (1906) -- The boy detective (1908) -- Her first adventure (1908) -- Caught by wireless (1908) -- At the French ball (1908). 198-? 95 min. Video/C 7152

The Origins of Cinema. Volume 4.

Examples of comedies and dramas directed by D. W. Griffith for American Mutoscope and Biograph between 1908 and 1912, with special emphasis on insights into Griffith's directing and editing techniques. Contents: Balked at the altar (1908) -- Faithful (1910) -- A dash through the clouds (1912) -- A calamitous elopement (1908) -- Where breakers roar (1908) -- The cord of life (1909) -- The girls and daddy (1909) -- The golden Louis (1909) -- At the altar (1909) -- Fools of Fate (1909). 102 min. Video/C 7169

The Origins of Cinema. Volume 5.

Traces the origins of cinema with early silent films by D.W. Griffith and Siegmund Lubin Manufacturing Company of Philadelphia, showing elements of pre-production planning including constructed sets, interior and exterior scenes, division of the story into scenes and purposeful camera movement and the first attempts at two-reel films. Contents: His trust (1911) -- His trust fulfilled (1911) -- Enoch Arden (1911) -- A temporary trust (1912) -- The girl and her trust (1912) -- The bold bank robbery (1904) -- She would be an actress (1909) -- Drunkards's child (1904) -- An unexpected guest (1909). 198-? 102 min. Video/C 7153

The Origins of Cinema. Volume 6.

Traces the origins of the cinema with early silent films including examples of films from independent producers, films of French filmmaker Georges Melies, comedies produced in Great Britain by Clarendon, Gaumont and Hepworth Companies and Britain's first documentary dramas pointing out social evils. Contents: Love and war (1899)--The girl from Montana (1907)--His first ride (1907)--The Bandit king (1907)--The bank robbery (1908)--The inn where no man rests (1903)--The spiritualist photographer (1903)--The kingdom of the fairies (1903)--The magic lantern (1903)--The clock maker's dream (1903)--The cook in trouble (1904)--The mermaid (1904)--How the old woman caught the omnibus (1903)--The eviction (1904)--The bewitched traveler (1904)--An Englishman's trip to Paris from London (1904)--The lover's ruse (1904)--A race for a kiss (1904)--The other side of the hedge (1904)--Fine feathers make fine birds (1905)--The pickpocket (1903)--The child stealers (1904)--Raid on a coiner's den (1904)--Revenge (1904)--A railway tragedy (1904)-- Decoyed (1904)--Rescued by rover (1905). 198-? 105 min. Video/C 7154

[Paul, R.W.] R.W. Paul: The Collected Films, 1895-1908

This video contains 62 films by R.W. Paul. It represents an attempt to bring together for the first time the collected output of this leading pioneer of British film and one of the founders of world cinema. Paul produced what is arguably the first British narrative film (A soldier's courtship, 1896, now lost), and in 1898 became the first person to edit two scenes together in 'Come along, do!' 1895-1896: Rough sea at Dover -- Footpads -- The derby -- Hyde Park bicycling scene -- Scene on the river Thames, showing the rescue of a child from drowning -- Royal train -- Comic costume race -- Twin's tea party -- Blackfriars Bridge -- Westminster Bridge [filoscope] -- Sea cave near Lisbon -- Andalusian dance [filoscope] -- Chirgwin the white eyed kaffir [filoscope] -- 2 a.m., or the husband's return -- 1897: Queen Victoria's diamond jubilee -- Women fetching water from the Nile -- Fishermen and boat at Port Said -- Cupid at the wash tub -- Wayfarer compelled to disrobe partially -- 1898: Launch of H.M.S. Albion -- Switchback railway -- Sirdar's reception at Guldhall -- Favourite domestic scene -- Tommy Atkins in the park -- Come along, do! -- 1899: Reproductions of incidents of the Boer War -- Upside down, or the human flies. 1900: Army life: mounted infantry -- Tetherball, of do-do -- Cronje's surrender to Lord Roberts -- Entry of the Scots' Guards into Bloemfontein -- Exciting pillow fight -- Railway collision -- His brave defender -- 1901: Cheese mites -- Over-incubated baby -- Countryman's first sight of animated pictures -- Undressing extraordinary -- Waif and the wizard -- Artistic creation -- Deonzo Brothers in their wonderful jumping act -- Haunted curiosity shop -- Magic sword -- Scrooge or Marley's ghost -- 1902: His only pair -- Extraordinary waiter -- 1903: Coronation Durbar at Delhi -- Delhi Durbar -- Hammerfest -- Kiddies cakewalk -- Chess dispute -- Extraordinary cab accident -- 1904: Buy your own cherries -- Drat that boy -- Mr. Pecksniff fetches the doctor -- 1905: Unfortunate policeman -- 1906: Return of the T.R.H. the Prince and Princess of Wales -- Aberdeen University quarter centenary celebrations -- Lively quarter-day -- Is spiritualism a fraud? -- The Motorist -- 1908: Whaling afloat and ashore. 147 min. DVD 8451

[Pickford, Mary] Mary Pickford

Mary Pickford created a totally new way of acting that entranced audiences and left them spell-bound. She was also a creative producer and shrewd businessperson who played a pivotal role in shaping the first new media of the twentieth century. This powerful and moving production uses footage, stills, original audio interviews with Pickford and clips from her movies to tell a story that is full of joy and power, of loneliness and despair. Written and directed by Sue Williams Originally broadcast on the television program, the American Experience. 2005. 90 min. DVD 3785

[Pickford, Mary] Mary Pickford: A Life on Film.

By the age of seventeen, Mary Pickford had become the first actress to achieve international superstardom. By the time she was thirty, she was the first and only woman ever to own a major movie studio. With comedic and tragic talents and business acumen, Mary Pickford was the consummate movie star of the 20th century. This definitive documentary combines an abundance of previously unseen footage from Pickford's own archive with exceptional research to demonstrate why she and her films remain touchstones of film history. 2000. 99 min. Video/C 7224

Les Pionniers du Cinema Francais, Volume 1

Contents: Employees leaving Lumière Factory -- Arrival of Express at Lyons -- Friendly party in the garden of Lumière -- Feeding the baby -- Boys sailing boats, Tuilleries Gardens, Paris -- The falling wall -- Baths at Milan, Italy -- French dragoons -- Gondola party -- Sack race -- Military review, Hungary --German hussars jumping fences -- Feeding the swans -- Boiler loading -- Le voyage dans le lune (1902) -- A la conquete du Pole (1912) -- The gipsy's warning -- Kingdom of the Fairies (1903). DVD 7794 [preservation copy]; vhs Video/C 999:353

Les Pionniers du Cinema Francais, Volume 2

Contents: Whence does he come? (D'ou vient-il? 1905) -- Scenes of convict life (Au bagne, 1905) -- A father's honor (L'honneur d'un pere, 1905) -- Fun after the wedding (Noce en goguette, 1911) -- The runaway horse (Le cheval emballe, 1907) -- Revolution in Odessa (La revolution en Russie, 1905) -- Down in the deep (Le pecher des perles, 1904) -- The astronomer's dream (Le reve de l'astronome, 1905). 60 min. total. DVD 7795 [preservation copy]; vhs Video/C 999:354

View "Astronomer's Dream" (Le rêve de l'astronome) (Attributed to Georges Méliès, but more likely a 1905 Pathé version)

[ Porter, Edwin S.] Before the Nickelodeon: The Early Cinema of Edwin S. Porter

A portrait of pioneer film producer Edwin S. Porter. Spotlights the years from 1894 to 1908. Includes hand-tinted stills and segments from Porter's movies and those of other filmmakers. 60 min. Video/C 3637

Les Premiers pas du Cinema: Un Reve en Couleur (Discovering Cinema: Movies Dream in Color

Historical survey of the development of color in motion pictures with early films included in special features to illustrate the main points of technological and artistic development. Coloriage =Coloring:Forgerons (1895, 0:32 min.) --Mort de Marat (1897, 0:38 min.) --Danse serpentine (1898, 0:51 min.) --Execution de Jeannne d'Arc (1898, 0:41 min.) --Danseurs espagnols (1898, 2:01 min.) --Metamorphoses du Papillon (1904, 1:21 min.) --Fee aux Fleurs (1905, 1:07 min.) --Sorcier arabe (1906, 2:45 min.) -- Synthes`e additive =Additive synthesis:Inauguration du Campanile de San Marco (1912, 11 min.) --Essai trichrome du Dr. Doyen (1912, 0:40 min.) --Essai couluer de Sonia Delaunay (1928, 0:24 min.) --Jeunes femmes prenant le The (1937, 3:11 min.) --Synthese soustractive =Subtractive synthe`sis: Wonderland of California (1930, 6:50 min.) --King of Jazz (1930, 3:34 min.) --Cucaracha (1934, 19:37 min.) --Becky Sharp (1935, 2:46 min.) --New York (1938, 5:03 min.) DVD 4651

Les Premiers pas du Cinema: A la Recherche du Son (Discovering Cinema: Learning to Talk)

Historical survey of the development of sound in motion pictures with early films and extracts from films included in special features to illustrate the main points of technological and artistic development. Son direct =Live sound:Quand madelon (1917, 3:19 min.) --Pere la Victorie (1917, 3:55 min.) --Chamber mystery [extract] (1920, 8:15 min.) --Miss Venus [extract] (1921, 4:58 min.) --Ain't she sweet (1933, 7:13 min.) --Son sur disque =Sound on disc:Lucia Di Lammermoor (1908, 4:01 min.) --Donna e Mobile (1908, 2:29 min.) --Carmen 'Air du Toreador' (1910, 4:17 min.) --Legende du Roi Gambrinus (1911, 2:37 min.) --Marseillaise (1911, 2:48 min.) --Nursery favorites (1913, 5:29 min.) --Chanteur de jazz (1927, 6:53 min.) --Son optique =Optical sound:Snappy tunes (1923, 6:51 min.) --Theodore Case test film (1924, 0:32 min.) --Ma he's making eyes at me (1925, 1:36 min.) --Arthur Conan Doyle (1927, 10:37 min.) --Governor Young hails greater talkie season (1928, 2:29 min.) --Finding his voice (1929, 10:12 min.) DVD 4652

Retour de Flamme

Presents twelve seminal films in the early development of motion pictures in France and the United States, with each film preceded by extensive optional historical commentary. I'll say she is / avec Marx Brothers (1931, 4:36 min.) --Peine du Talion =Talion punishment (1906, 4:12 min.) --Alice in Wonderland / avec Viola Savoy (1915, 27:43 min.) -- Trois soundies = Three soundies (8:00 min.) :Playmates (1944) --Male order (1941) --Sheik of Araby / avec Spike Jones (1944) --Crue de la Seine =Seine flood (1910, 4:26 min.) --To spring / Hugh Harman, Rudolf Ising (1936, 8:58 min.) --Femmes deputes =Women deputies / avec Madeleine Guitty (1912, 7:33 min.) --MGM promp reel / Laurel et Hardy (1936, 8:30 min.) --Gosses de la butte =Montmartre's kids (1916, 3:51 min.) --Joie de vivre / Anthony Gross (1934, 8:56 min.) --Lizzies of the field / avec Billy Bevan ; production, Mack Sennett (1924, 9:29 min.) --Philips broadcast / production, George Pal (1938, 4:58 min.) Bonus feature: "Le raid en avion" (quatrieme episode, serial) / production, Ellen Richter ; realisation, Willi Wolff (1924, 21:58 min). DVD 4650

[Shipman, Nell] The Nell Shipman Collection: A Girl from God's Country(1921)

Directed by Nell Shipman and Bert Van Tuyle. Cast: Nell Shipman, Charles Arling, Wheeler Oakman, Wellington Playter. Back to God's country: Renee is a beautiful young wife trapped on an ice-bound ship. Captain Blake, a murderous fugitive, will stop at nothing to have his way with her. With only the help of a ferocious dog named Wapi, she must stave off his advances and escape with her severely wounded husband to safety. Special Features: Back to God's country : a brief history -- Documentary: "Ah gee, forgetting me : Nell Shipman" / produced by Great North Productions in association with AAC Fact ; written and directed by Patricia Phillips (45 min.), c2001. DVD 8194

Credits and other information from the Internet Movie Database

Silent Britain

A journey through the first three decades of British cinema, when the cinema was silent and hugely popular. Cecil Hepworth's Rescued by Rover was re-shot twice as the original negative wore out, while The Battle of the Somme released in 1916, was watched by an estimated 20 million people. Britain had its share of glamorous starlets and leading men including Ivor Novello, Betty Balfour, Henry Edwards and Chrissie White and Blair, the world's first canine movie star, who lit up the screens. Fully illustrated throughout with film clips from the first British sex comedy in 1898 to Britain's first talkie in 1929-- Hitchcock's Blackmail. 88 min. DVD 6214

The Silent Feminists: America's First Women Directors

Unbeknownst to many, women have been directing feature films since the silent era of the American film industry. Such directors as Lois Weber, Frances Marion, Dorothy Arzner, Kathlyn Williams and Alice Guy Blache were a significant presence in the early days of Hollywood. Utilizing film clips, rare photos and interviews with survivors of the era, this documentary pays fond tribute to these pioneers. Dist.: Direct Cinema. c1993. 45 min. Video/C 8986

Silent Shakespeare

King John (Britain, 1899, 3 min.) / directed by Walter Pfeffer Dando...[et al.] -- The Tempest (Britain, 1908, 12 min.) / directed by Percy Stow -- A Midsummer night's dream (USA, 1909, 11 min.) / directed by James Stuart Blackton and Charles Kent -- King Lear (Italy, 1910, 16 min.) / directed by Gerolamo Lo Savio -- Twelfth night (USA, 1910, 13 min) / directed by Charles Kent, produced by J. Stuart Blackton -- The Merchant of Venice (Italy, 1910, 10 min.) / directed by Gerolamo Lo Savio -- Richard III (Britain, 1911, 22 min.) Cast: Sir Herbert Beerbohm Tree, Dora Senior (1st film). "Cast unknown" (2nd film). William V. Ranous, Maurice Costello (3rd film). Ermete Novelli, Francesca Bertini (4th film). Florence Turner, Charles Kent, Julia Swayne Gordon, (5th film). Ermete Novelli, Francesca Bertini (6th film). James Berry, Alfred Brydone, Sir Francis Benson (7th film). In the early days of the cinema, pioneer filmmakers created these seven charming films based on the plays of William Shakespeare. Considered a "lowbrow" medium, the fledgling movie industry sought to elevate its status by immortalizing the classics and hiring the actors of the day. Most of these early photoplays were only one or two reels long but whatever they gave up in language and length, they made up for in exuberance, cinematic artistry, visual wit and bravura acting. Some films feature original hand-stenciled color. DVD 230; vhs Video/C 999:2305

Thanhouser Classics.

Thanhouser Classics: The Early Years, 1910 to 1912.Only in the way / (1911, 12 min.) -- Get rich quick (1911, 13 min.) -- The coffin ship (1911, 15 min.) -- Cinderella / director, George O. Nicholas (1911, 14 min.) -- Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde / director, Lucius Henderson (1912, 12 min.) Music composed and performed by Andrew Crow. Cast: Marie Eline (1st film); Harry Benham, Marguerite Snow, Marie Eline (2nd); William Garwood (3rd); Florence LaBadie, Harry Benham, Anna Rosemond, Frank H. Crane, Alphonese Ethier (4th); James Cruze, Harry Benham, Florence LaBadie, Marie Eline (5th) Only in the way: in this story centering on family disharmony, the parents' treatment of the grandmother affects the little girl who identifies with her. Get rich quick: This moral tale observes how an elaborate swindle, the "Utopia Investment Corporation," affects one of its participants. Coffin ship: This one-reel adventure creates a visually strong seagoing story of a stowaway and a shipwreck. Cinderella: An elaboratley mounted version of the well-known fairy tale with stylistic costumes, sets and locations highlighted by in-camera trick photography. Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde: The second U.S. film version of the famous tale by Robert Louis Stevenson. It downplays the horror element in favor of the thematic conflict between the good and evil sides of one personality. DVD 5863; vhs Video/C 999:2837

The Vicar of Wakefield (1910 & 1917). Based on the novel by Oliver Goldsmith. Vicar of Wakefield / producer, Edwin Thanhouser (1910, 13 min.) -- Vicar of Wakefield / producer, Edwin Thanhouser, director, Ernest C. Warde (1917, 90 min.) Original music composed and performed by Raymond A. Brubacher. Cast: Martin J. Faust, Frank H. Crane, Anna Rosemond, William Garwood, Marie Eline, Bertha Blanchard, Lucille Younge, William Russell (1st film); Frederick B. Warde, Kathryn Adams, Robert Vaughn, Boyd Marshall, Morgan Jones (2nd film) Edwin Thanhouser adapted Goldsmith's well-known novel to the screen twice. This first film produced in 1910 had to be simplified and distilled down to one reel of story, which was done better by Thanhouser than any other studio of his time. The second film, produced after Thanhouser affiliated with Pathe in 1916, was a feature-length film. The elaborate production includes incidents vividly remembered by the novel's readers, such as the green spectacles, the debtor's prison, the sham marriage and the burning of the vicarage. DVD 5864; vhs Video/C 999:2840

Thanhouser Kids and Dogs Little girl next door / director, Lucius Henderson (1912, 14 min.) -- Evidence of the film / director, Edwin Thanhouser, Lawrence Marston (1913, 15 min.) -- Tiniest of stars (1913, 16 min.) -- Just a shabby doll (1913, 15 min.) -- Uncle's namesakes (1913, 15 min.) -- Shep's race with death / director, John Harvey (1914, 12 min.) -- Their one love / director, John Harvey (1915, 15 min.) Original music composed and performed by Raymond A. Brubacher. Cast: William Garwood, Marguerite Snow, Marion and Madeline Fairbanks, William Russell (1st film); James Cruze, Marie Eline, Helen Badgley (3rd); Mignon Anderson, Harry Benham, Lila Chester, Helen Badgley, Marie Eline, David H. Thompson (4th); David H. Thompson, Lila Chester, Madeline and Marion Fairbanks, Justus D. Barnes (5th); J.S. Murray, Marie Rainford, Marion and Madeline Fairbanks, Shep (6th); Madeline and Marion Fairbanks, Robert Wilson, Charles Emerson (7th) Little girl next door: The "Thanhouser twins," Marion and Madeline Fairbanks are featured in this tragic drama with a moral lesson. Evidence of the film: Early example of a fictional dramatic movie with filmmaking as a subject. The film laboratory and editing scenes are of enormous interest as historical document as well as ingeniously integrated in the crime tale. Tiniest of stars: An air of authenticity infuses this family drama of a brother and sister who take to the variety stage. Just a shabby doll: A relatively complex romantic story is squeezed onto only one reel. Of special interest are the 1913 New York City backgrounds and the unusual early use of flashback. Uncle's namesakes: Comic story of an American family's innocent deception to earn money from a rich English relative. Shep's race with death: This simple story of a heroic dog that saves the day appealed to audiences and became a movie staple for generations. Their one love: One of the many Civil War movies made during the 50th anniversary of the conflict and one of Thanhouser's last one-reel dramas. It features an elaborate and spectacular night battle sequence with pyrotechnics and electric lighting effects. DVD 5864; vhs Video/C 999:2841

Thanhouser Classics: Edwin Thanhouser Returns, 1914 to 1917 Crossed wires (aka A telephone tragedy) / director, Frederick R. Sullivan (1915, 31 min.) -- The soap suds star (1915, 15 min.) -- The world and the woman / director, W. Eugene Moore (1916, 66 min.) Music composed and performed by Andrew Crow. Cast: Inda Palmer, Morris Foster, Florence LaBadie, Boyd Marshall, Ina Hammer (1st film); Carey L. Hastings, Reginald Perry (2nd); Jeanne Eagels, Ethelmary Oakland, Boyd Marshall, Thomas A. Curran, Wayne Arey, Grace DeCarlton, Carey L. Hastings (3rd) Crossed wires: An innocent man is accused and convicted of murder, and when the facts finally surface, the innocent man's sister sets about trapping the guilty party. Stylistically, lighting effects are very effective and in one scene a flashlight, as the only illumination on the set, is shined into the camera. Soap suds star: An energetic comedy featuring a down-and-out actor and a funny laundry proprietor who are hired as a vaudeville act. They become a big hit until they try Shakespeare, which destroys their showbiz career. World and the woman: A very late Thanhouser film and the screen debut of the legendary actress Jeanne Eagels in which she plays the role of a prostitute turned faith healer. The film demonstrates many important advances in filmmaking such as feature length, editing techniques and a more complex, thoughtful story development. DVD 5863; vhs Video/C 999:2839

Thanhouser Stars Emerge. She / director, George O. Nichols (1911, 25 min.) -- Marble heart (1913, 27 min.) -- Mme. Blanche, beauty doctor / director, Arthur Ellery (1915, 14 min.) -- Fires of youth / director, Emile Chautard (1917, 31 min.)Original music composed and performed by Raymond A. Brubacher. Cast: Marguerite Snow, James Cruze, Viola Albert, William C. Cooper (1st film); Marguerite Snow, James Cruze, Florence LaBadie, William Russell, Burton Law (2nd); Harry Benham, Riley Chamberlin, Mignon Anderson (3rd); Frederick Warde, Jeanne Eagels, Helen Badgley, Ernest Howard, Robert Vaughn (4th) She: Based on the novel by H. Rider Haggard this is a very early film featuring many elements found in the not-yet-invented adventure/fantasy serial genre. Marble heart: A story of unrequited love, with a dream sequence that parallels the main story. Especially notable for the pale makeup used to solve orthochromatic film's blotchy-dark rendering of skin tones. Adapted from the play by Charles Selby. Mme. Blanche, beauty doctor: A good example of the clever light comedy produced by Thanhouser that invites plenty of satirical social observation such as the burgeoning beauty-salon industry presented here. Fires of youth: A production from Thanhouser's mature period, this film clearly shows the advancements that set the stage for the first cinematic golden age, the 1920s. This surviving shortened version presents such advances as detailed character development, mature editing techniques, special lighting effects, realistic use of locations, fluid dialogue intertitles, complex staging and access to better cameras. DVD 5864; vhs Video/C 999:2842

Under the Mutual Banner (1912 to 1914) The cry of the children / directed by George O. Nicholas (1912, 29 min.) -- Petticoat camp (1912, 15 min.) -- The star of Bethlehem / director, Lawrence Marston (1912, 15 min.) -- The decoy (1914, 16 min.) -- A dog's love / director, John Harvey (1914, 11 min.) Music composed and performed by Andrew Crow. Cast: Marie Eline, Ethel Wright, James Cruze, Lila H. Chester (1st film); Florence LaBadie, William Garwood, the Jordan Sisters (2nd); Florence LaBadie, James Cruze, William Russell, Harry Benham, Justus D. Barnes, Charles Horan, Riley Chamberlin (3rd); Charles Horan, Marie Rainford, Virginia Waite, Muriel Ostriche, Morgan Jones, Boyd Marshall (4th); Shep (dog), Helen Badgley, Arthur Bauer, Ethyle Cooke Benham, Fan Bourke (5th). Cry of the children: An expression of the pre-World War One reform movement concerning child labor. The story contrasts scenes of the mill owner's home life with that of a poor working family. An unsuccessful strike, poverty, death and hardship threaten to tear the poor family apart. Petticoat camp: A light-handed battle-of-the sexes comedy portraying several married couples vacationing on an island. When the men play and the women work, the ladies rebel and move to an island of their own. Star of Bethlehem: This ambitious film of the birth of Christ was one of the first steps toward true feature-length films (more than 2 reels long). It features sumptuous costumes, crowds of actors and rich staging with a cast of 200 persons. Decoy: A "respectable" city couple of "card sharks" invite a distant country relative to visit, then use her as a pretty, unwitting decoy to lure rich victims. Dog's love: Featuring Shep (the Thanhouser Collie), this fantasy centers around a loyal dog's attachment of his little girl playmate. DVD 5863; vhs Video/C 999:2838

Treasures from American Film Archives: 50 Preserved Films

Audiences associate American film with Hollywood studio productions. This anthology however celebrates other types of early films including documentaries, newsreels, avant-garde and independent works, amateur and home movies, animated and industrial films, and silent movies from the earliest years of motion pictures.

Program 1. Contents: The Original movie (1922, 8 min.) -- Early films from the Edison Company (3 min.): Blacksmithing scene (1893), The gay shoe clerk (1903), Three American beauties (1906) -- Princess Nicotine; or, the smoke fairy (1909, 5 min.) -- The Confederate Ironclad (1912, 16 min.) -- Hell's hinges / writer/director, William S. Hart (1916, 64 min.) -- The Fall of the House of Usher (1928, 13 min.) -- From Groucho Marx's home movies (ca. 1933, 2 min.) -- Running around San Francisco for an education (1938, 2 min.) -- From Tevye (1939, 17 min.) -- Cologne: from the diary of Ray and Esther (1939, 14 min.) -- Private Sanfu: "Spies" (1943, 4 min.) -- OffOn (1968, 9 min.).

Original movie: Satire about moviemaking in a shadowgraph style. Princess Nicotine: A tale of a tormented smoker; the most celebrated special effects film of its day. Confederate Ironclad: Recreates the battle between the Monitor and the Merrimack. Hell's hinges: a one reel Western. Fall of the House of Usher: the most renowned and technically accomplished work of 1920's avant-garde cinema. Running around San Francisco: An early filmed political ad for school bonds. Tevye: little-known Yiddish cinema recreating 19th century Ukraine. Cologne: Amateur filmmakers production of a social documentary. OffOn: A landmark avant-garde film, the first to fully integrate video with film. DVD 360

Program 2. Contents: Paper print copyright deposits (7 min.): Star theatre (1901), Move on (1903), Dog factory (1904) -- The Lonedale operator / directed by D. W. Griffith (1911, 17 min.) -- Her crowning glory (1911, 14 min.) -- The toll of the sea / directed by Chester M. Franklin (1922, 54 min.) -- From Accuracy first (ca. 1928, 5 min.) -- From West Virginia documentaries (9 min.): West Virginia, the state beautiful (1929), One-room schoolhouses (ca. 1935) -- From Early amateur sound film (1936-37, 4 min.) -- Composition 1 (Themis) (1940, 4 min.) -- The Battle of San Pietro / U.S. War Dept. (1945, 33 min.) -- Negro Leagues baseball (1946, 8 min.) -- Battery film (1985, 9 min.).

Lonedale operator: A one-reeler celebrated for its flamboyant and advanced editing. Her crowning glory: Features American film's first comic star, John Bunny. Toll of the sea: The first feature film that produced color prints from standard projectors. Accuracy first: Early corporate training film. West Virginia: Early documentary films. Composition 1 (Themis): Modern, constructivist painting in film format. Battle of San Pietro: Unmatched documentary evoking the physicality and human price of war. Negro Leagues baseball: Unedited silent footage in Crosley Field focusing on Reese "Goose" Tatum. Battery film: Early documentary of Battery Park in Manhattan. DVD 361

Program 3. Contents: The thieving hand (1908, 5 min.) -- White fawn's devotion (1910, 11 min.) -- The Chechahcos / directed by Lewis H. Moomaw (1924, 86 min.) -- From Japanese American communities (1927-32, 7 min.) -- From Rare aviation films (13 min.): The Keystone "Patrician" (1928), The Zeppelin "Hindenburg" (1936) -- We work again / U.S. Works Projects Administration (1937, 15 min.) -- From La Valse (1951, 6 min.) -- The wall (1962, 10 min.) -- George Dumpson's place / producer, Ed Emshwiller (1965, 8 min.).

Thieving hand: Notable for stop motion and movement by hidden wires. White fawn's devotion: Earliest surviving film directed by a Native American. Chechahcos: An early independently produced film, the first filmed entirely on location in Alaska. Japanese American communities: A window into the daily life of ethnic Americans before WWII produced by amateur filmmakers. Rare aviation films: Early documentary films promoting airplanes and zepplins. We work again: Depression-era documentary on African American reemployment. La Valse: George Balanchine choreography performed by the dancers for whom he created it. The Wall: Documentary about the first year of the Berlin Wall. George Dumpson's place: About an impoverished African American handyman and folk artist. DVD 362

Program 4. Contents: Peepshow kinetoscopes from 1894 (1 min.): Luis Martinetti, contortionist, Caicedo, king of the slack wire -- Interior New York subway (1905, 5 min.) -- The Land beyond the sunset (1912, 14 min.) -- I'm insured (1916, 3 min.) -- Snow White / directed by J. Searle Dawley (1916, 63 min.) -- From Beautiful Japan (1918, 15 min.) -- From Rural life in Maine (ca. 1930, 12 min.) -- News parade of 1934 (10 min.) -- Rose Hobart / directed by Joseph Cornell (1936, 19 min.) -- Autobiography of a Jeep (1943, 10 min.) -- From Marian Anderson: the Lincoln memorial concert (1939, 8 min.)

Interior New York subway: documents New York City's newest marvel: the subway less than 7 months after its opening. Land beyond the sunset: An Edison one-reeler social problem film set in New York City. I'm insured: a hand-drawn animated cartoon. Snow White: A film that was seen by 15 yr. old Walt Disney, rear-projected onto four screens arranged in a square around which the audience sat, the inspiration for his later animated film. Beautiful Japan: an epic travel film of 1918 used to enliven public lectures. Rural life in Maine: Amateur film of farm life. Rose Hobart: a re-editing of a jungle melodrama. Autobiography of a jeep: Narrated by the Jeep itself about its capabilities. Marian Anderson concert: a controversial concert by the Afro-American singer Marian Anderson on the Lincoln Memorial steps.

More Treasures from American Film Archives, 1894-1931: 50 Films.

Anthology of films from American film archives. In addition to rare silent-era features, includes cartoons and animation, documentaries and newsreels, earliest American movies, pioneering sound and color experiments, serial episodes, trailers for lost films, advertisements, avant-garde shorts, ethnographic footage, films of ethnic communities, and other film types invented during the first four decades of the motion picture. 3 part set contains 50 films followed by six previews for lost features and serials and over 500 interactive screens about the films and music.

Program 1. Contents: Dickson experimental sound film (ca. 1894, 15 seconds) -- Buffalo Bill's wild West (1 min): Annie Oakley (1894) ; Buffalo dance (1894), Bucking broncho (1894) -- The suburbanite (1904, 9 min.) -- The country doctor (1909, 14 min.) -- The wonderful Wizard of Oz (1910, 13 min.) -- Early advertising films (10 min.): Admiral Cigarette (1897,) ; Flash Cleaner (ca. 1920) ; Buy an electric refrigerator (1926) ; The stenographer's friend (1910) -- The invaders (1912, 41 min.) -- The hazards of Helen: Episode 26 (1915, 14 min.) -- Gretchen the greenhorn (1916, 58 min.) -- The breath of a nation (1919, 6 min.) -- De-light: making an electric light bulb (1920, 12 min.) -- Skyscraper symphony (1929, 9 min.) -- Greetings by George Bernard Shaw (1928, 5 min.). DVD 2944

Program 2. Contents: The Streets of New York (5 min.): What happened on Twenty-Third Street (1901) ; At the foot of the Flatiron (1903) ; New York City "ghetto" fish market (1903) -- From Leadville to Aspen (1906, 8 min.) -- The "Teddy" bears (1907, 13 min.) -- Children wholabor (1912, 13 min.) -- Early color films (12 min.): [from] Concerning $1,000 ; [from] Exhibition reel of two color film (ca. 1929) ; The flute of Krishna (1926) -- [Surviving reel of] Lotus Blossom (1921, 12 min.) -- Gus Visser and his singing duck (ca. 1921, 12 min.) -- Clash of the wolves (1925, 74 min.) -- International newsreel (1926, 13 min.) -- Now you're talking (1927, 9 min.) -- There it is (1928, 19 min.) -- A Bronx morning (1931, 11 min.). DVD 2945

Program 3. Contents: Rip Wan Winkle (1896, 4 min.) -- Mr. Edison at work in his chemical laboratory (1897, 30 seconds) -- Life of an American fireman (1903, 6 min.) -- Westinghouse works (1904, 6 min.) -- Falling leaves (1912, 12 min.) -- Hollywood promotional films (14 min.): Exhibitors' reel for "Hands up" (1918) ; [from] C-V News filming "Greed" (1923) -- Movie lovers' contest (1926) -- De Forest phonofilms (11 min.): A few moments with Eddie Cantor (ca. 1923) ; President Coolidge, taken on the White House grounds (1924) -- Inklings (1925, 6 min.) -- Lady Windermere's fan (1925, 89 min.) -- Cockeyed (ca. 1925, 3 min.) -- Prologue from The Passaic textile strike (1926, 18 min.) -- Tramp, tramp, tramp (1926, 4 min.) -- [from] Zora Neal Hurston's fieldwork footage (1928, 7 min.) -- Trailers for lost films (1923-1928, 10 min.). DVD 2946

Treasures III: Social Issues in American Film, 1900-